Xigbar yawned as he sleepily strolled to his kitchen that wasn't very far way from his bed, scratching his somewhat disheveled hair as he opened the refrigerator and tried to find something for breakfast even though it was nearly one o'clock in the afternoon. He grabbed a carton of eggs and checked the date, deeming it fitful to eat. As he pulled a pan from the small cabinet next to the refrigerator, the day before yesterday's events came in his mind as he turned the small stove that set to the left of the refrigerator. The strange feeling he got when he was near Roxas bothered him. He cracked two eggs, though only the egg white, in the hot pan, and he almost wondered why he dreamed of Ventus, his old love, but when he thought about it, he knew the answer: he was lonely, but he didn't want to admit it. Not only did he get such a strange feeling when he was around Roxas, but since last night, he had felt a tightness in his chest that mirrored the feeling from almost a year ago. He could totally understand Roxas' suspicion, but at the same time, it hurt. It hurt have someone think he was a pedophile when he worked so hard to put away people like that and keep children safe. It made him feel horrible to see the victims of rape, but the children... the children who were so innocent and barely knew what was happening and who were going to have their lives ruined up forever; seeing them made his drive to put pedophiles away strong, yet it made him so angry that someone could do that. Now someone he just met was non-verbally assuming that he was a pedophile, and lied about it to his face... but he couldn't be mad at Roxas, he didn't know the whole story and he was beautiful, like Ventus.
He sighed as the eggs sizzled, trying to find something to turn them over with. He managed to find a spatula in the nearby drawer, flipping his eggs and over just in time; They were slightly scorched, but he didn't mind. He sighed; he missed Ventus so much... and looking at Roxas was like looking at a ghost. Ventus had been the most wonderful person he had ever met, not only his childhood friend, but his lover and boyfriend... but he was gone forever. He couldn't dwell on it. What he didn't get about Roxas was why the kid was so suspicious, even after he showed him the photo. Maybe Roxas was just a overly cautious person, but his chest still felt tight when he thought of either of them.
Xigbar laid his cooked egg whites on a plate he took from the cabinets above him, finding a fork in the same drawer he found the spatula. He slowly began to eat his eggs. He didn't know why he wanted too, but maybe he could get the kid to open up to him. There was something in his heart driving him to. His eggs were finished quickly and he placed the plate and fork in the sink before he adjusted his eyepatch, moving towards the top left corner of the medium sized room, where his bed and dresser were.
His simple bed consisted of two mattresses atop each other, a pillow, and a thick, green and yellow striped blanket, with his small dresser sitting a few feet away from it.
Xigbar made a decent amount of money and had an actual bed, but he usually slept in his hammock in his art room, or on his makeshift bed. What money he did have, he used for food, rent, electric bills, and art supplies. He opened a drawer on his dresser, grabbing a white undershirt and a pair of worn blue jeans, slipping them on with another yawn. As Xigbar walked to the top right corner of his room, towards his bathroom, he undid the blue rubber band that held his hair in its ponytail. His dual toned hair spread out, covering his back as his bare feet hit the tile of the bathroom. Hopefully Roxas would send him a message on MSN and they could talk again. He wanted to convince Roxas he was a good guy, so maybe they could be... friends. He couldn't pinpoint why he wanted to be friends with Roxas, but he was troubled by that thought; to him, it seemed wrong. Maybe it was just his few years of experience telling him that even a feeling like his could turn into something disgusting but at the same time, it could be nothing..
Xigbar looked at himself in the small mirror, running a finger along his scar, the scar that reminded him of everything bad in his life, before he took his brush in hand. He brushed his hair and retied it with the rubber band and brushed his teeth, figuring he would head out to buy a few canvases, more paints, and some lunch. Roxas would be out of school by then so he would have enough time to get home and get on MSN by the time Xigbar was home from his errands.
Xigbar left his bathroom and walked to his couch, grabbing his messenger bag and button up shirt from it; shirt first, then messenger bag. He found a pair of used socks on the couch as well, slipping them on before he put his boots on which rested against the side of the small zebra print couch. He opened his messenger bag, and his wallet, cellphone, and house keys were indeed inside; he had a habit of loosing things, from his keys to his underwear. He was at his door and he left his apartment, passing a few rooms in the long hallway, heading towards the elevator; he was thankful the building had an elevator since he lived on the sixth floor. Xigbar pressed the down button and only had to wait a few seconds before he stepped into the elevator, yawning more as it took him to the first floor. He strolled out of his building and into the sunlight, groaning at the bright light and the loud noises city. It was afternoon yet after lunch time, so there wasn't a lot of people on the streets as he turned away from the Train Station that was up the hill, heading towards the nearby Tram Stop, hoping to get a tram to the central part of Twilight Town where most of the shops were.
He didn't pass many people as he made his way towards the Tram stop a few blocks down from his house, hands in his jean pockets as his boots made contact with the beige pavement. He needed blue, yellow, red, brown, and white paint and around four canvases. He just felt like painting a picture of Ventus, just to make himself feel a little less lonely after he thought about the blond. And he kept thinking of Roxas too. There was something about the kid... and it didn't have to do with how much he resembled Ventus, but he couldn't place the feeling. A tram approached from the the Train Station, and he got on it, flashing the tram's driver his year long travel card that was a flat rate for a whole year of tram and train travel. There were only five people on the tram, and he sat down near the front of the tram that shifted and began to slowly lurch into movement. Twilight Town was a somewhat small town, though large compared to others, so trams were the easiest way to get around.
It took around twenty minutes to reach the bustling center of town, and Xigbar got off there, already knowing where he was going. He had been to the art shop so many times that he knew the directions by heart. When one got off the tram at the circular plaza, take the path straight across from the tram stop, and continue down until one reached the fifth right, then walk down the path until you saw the blue sign. The first time he tried to find the art shop, he got so confused that he ended up back in front of his house; Twilight Town had a lot of alleyways and shortcuts between streets. Now that he knew the way, it only took around ten minutes to reach the shop.
As Xigbar opened the door, a bell chimed softly and a thin woman dressed in a black dress with a fur trimmed collar that exposed some of her cleavage. She gave a tiny smile at her regular customer.
"Greetings Xigbar. Come for more canvases and paints, I suppose?"
"Hey, Lulu. And yep, used my others up already," Xigbar chuckled as me moved to his left, immediately going for two medium sized canvases, a small canvas, and a large canvas that nearly reached five feet tall.
"As usual. Take your time, I'm going to run to the back for a minute." Lulu said in her soft, serious voice. Xigbar was her most frequent customer, always coming in for paints, canvases, colored pencils, and sketchbooks; he used those items up like water. She was a fan of his artwork as well. He just brought so much emotion and movement into his art... it was amazing. Her long dress drug against the floor as she moved behind the counter towards the break room so she could grab a drink of water; She trusted Xigbar not to do anything.
"Alrighty." Xigbar said as he moved to the other wall where the paints were. Lulu's art shop was small, but it got a lot of business from the people who went to it, including him. He usually was constantly here to buy art supplies, nearly every one or two weeks, whether he needed a sketchbook or paints, but recently, his suppressed loneliness had been getting to him and his drawings lacked their usual... passion, like his heart wasn't in them. Maybe doing this painting of Ventus might help him, give him a chance to remember the good memories he had and get his drive back. He reached to the top shelf, easily reaching the bottle of brown paint, holding the canvases under his right arm. Lulu walked into the room as he got a bottle of blue paint, then white, red, and yellow. He thought about whether he needed new paintbrushes, but he remembered that he had gotten a new pack of them around three weeks ago, so he turned around and headed towards the counter, passing a few rows of supplies.
"Is this all you need?" Lulu asked as she began to ring up the canvases, while Xigbar pulled out his wallet.
"Yep, plannin' on doin' a painting of a old friend." Xigbar gave a half-hearted grin laced with traces loneliness; it was hard to speak about Ventus, even to someone like Lulu, who understood the deepest of feelings and offered wise, helpful advice and knew about his past with the blond.
"That's wonderful. I'd love to see it when its completed." Lulu nodded."I already know who it will be."
"Yeah... Was thinkin' about him recently." Xigbar admitted. Was he that obvious? Lulu placed the paints in a plastic bag.
"I understand. Your total will be fifty-seven dollars and forty cents."
"Alright." Xigbar muttered as he pulled out a fifty and a ten munny bill, and a few pieces of munny, handing them to the much shorter woman, taking the bag and placing it in his messenger bag.
"Come back when you need more, and to show that painting," Lulu winked as Xigbar grabbed the canvases and held them under his arm.
"Thanks, Lulu." Xigbar called as he turned and left the shop, stomach rumbling. He got his supplies so now he needed some lunch... Even now, he could think about Ventus, but talking about him was a different story. It was like Ventus' name just wouldn't come out of his mouth, liked it was locked behind a cage. It was because he didn't want to remember anything painful. Thinking about Ventus was okay, but anything deeper brought up memories he would rather not visualize, but when he thought about Roxas at the same time.. it was a little less worse.
He knew his favorite Chinese restaurant was around the corner near his house, so he figured he run by the small restaurant for lunch before returning home.
II~XIII~II~XIII
"So, are you heading home, Roxas? You should come hang with us, maybe I can even set you up with a lady."
"No thanks, Hayner." Roxas laughed as one of his friends was trying another futile attempt at getting him a girlfriend."I'm gonna head home. Are you coming too Sora?"
"Yeah..." Sora pouted, clinging to his boyfriend, Riku's arm." stuck me with a extra credit project to help pull my History grade up."
"That sucks. Well, I gotta head off you three. See ya!" Hayner shouted as he dashed off in the opposite directions, stopping to yell at Pence to hurry up, who stood near the school's stairs.
"Aww, I wish Riku could come home with us..." Sora grinned, making suggestive puppy dog eyes at the silver haired male, who just shook his head and smirked.
"I can't, Sora. I got a project to work on as well and I have to run to the store to get some rice for dinner tonight."
"But you can work with me!"
"You mean do all the work. No thanks." Riku said with a laugh, Roxas joining in.
"Hey!" Sora exclaimed.
"Well, I gotta go now Sora, see you." Riku gave Sora a kiss on the forehead, earning a kiss and a beaming grin."See you later, Roxas."
Roxas and Sora waved as Riku headed in the direction Hayner took, towards the center of town where grocery store was located. The real reason Roxas declined his offer was that he wanted to talk with Xigbar on MSN. He wouldn't say anything about him looking Xigbar up in the sex offender registry or about the article; Xigbar would certainly get offended. He was going to try and ask some casual questions to see if he would get a hint about whether Xigbar was a pedophile or not. He was starting to seriously doubt that idea but he just wanted to make sure. Maybe it was because he wanted to be friends with the man, but he wasn't sure.
"C'mon Sora, let's hurry home." Roxas said as he passed a group of teenagers chattering loudly as he headed down the sidewalk with Sora running to catch up. He didn't want to miss Xigbar if he was online.
"So, how'd your date with that Xigbar guy go?" Sora asked innocently with a grin, but he yelped when Roxas slapped the back of his head.
"It wasn't a date, Sora. And it went good, for your information. I got his MSN so we can chat."
"Better not send him nude pictures of- Yowch!" Roxas' face erupted in crimson and he slapped the back Sora's head again, this time a little harder.
"That's gross, Sora! I wouldn't do that, plus, I barely know him!"
"Sorry..." Sora gave a sheepish grin. "But are you sure? Seemed like a date to me."
Roxas stopped and blinked at his brother.
"Shut up, Sora."
Roxas huffed and continued down the hill towards the Tram Common, his twin trailing behind him with a grin on his face.
"Well, are you gonna tell me what happened?" Sora questioned. Sometimes his twin brother was too uptight and needed to learn how to take a joke.
"I guess." Roxas said, rolling his eyes even though he gave a smile. "Me and Xigbar talked about his old job and some random questions that was it."
"That's cool. Me and Riku saw an animated movie and kissed," Sora laughed. Riku had been his boyfriend for nearly a year, and they often went to movies and places together. He couldn't get why Roxas got so flustered over his naked picture joke. He had said many jokes like that to Roxas and all in good fun, but he never reacted like that. Maybe his brother had a bit of crush... He giggled at the thought, earning a weird stare from Roxas.
They stopped at the edge of a sidewalk with a small crowd of people as a tram trailed by slowly, and when it passed, the walking signal on the pole next to them changed to green, showing that they were safe to walk across the street to the other side from where they went go straight across the large plaza towards their house, people passing them by. Roxas gave a soft sigh as Sora strolled along happily, humming some random song. He hoped that his Dad would be home today so he could at least say hello to him. It was a little depressing to hardly ever have their father home; he was constantly busy, whether it was business trips or long hours. He loved his mother dearly, but it would be nice to see his father...
Passing by the archway, Roxas and Sora kept going down the street, past the first four streets and coming to a stop on the fifth street where their house set on the corner. As they walked up to the door, Roxas pulled out his house keys, unlocking the door for both of them.
"Mom, we're home!" Sora announced as he ran into the room, heading straight for the kitchen for a snack.
"Welcome back, you two." Tifa greeted her sons as she walked down the stairs, a basket of dirty laundry in her hands.
"Hey, Mom," Roxas stated as he hurried up the stairs to his room; he didn't want to miss Xigbar if the man was online.
Tifa couldn't resist letting out a soft laugh; teenagers, always in their rooms.
Roxas stepped into his room, closing the door and setting his backpack next to his desk. Stretching, he slipped his sneakers off and sat them next to his backpack, sitting down in his computer chair as he pressed the power button on his laptop. He wiped his forehead, feeling sweat bead on his pale skin from the summer heat and he realized he hadn't opened the window. He stood, moving to his right, grabbing the window's latch and turning it, letting the window swing outwards; there windows were a little different, and then swung out from the left. As he sat down, his computer screen blinked on, and he maneuvered on his finger on the touch-pad of his laptop, clicking the blue MSN icon. The box popped up and he typed in his email and password, letting it load as he logged in. Roxas' heart began to race in his chest and he blushed when he thought of Sora's earlier comment. So he was excited.. that didn't mean anything! He still had a slight suspicion of Xigbar, but-
"Don't send him naked pictures-"
"Stupid Sora..." Roxas huffed, forcing his thoughts to a halt. His computer made a ringing tone, and a box popped up.
Would you like to accept TheFreeshooter as a friend?
He clicked yes, and Xigbar's avatar popped up on his list of friends; it was a black bat. He thought that man's username was fitting considering his background as a detective, which meant he was most likely good with guns. His avatar had a green ring around it, which meant he was available. He looked to his window when he heard a peculiar bird call, and he gasped. On his window perched a bright azure bird with a magnificent plume of snow white feathers atop its head, intelligent green eyes, it's feathers speckled with yellow dots, both its wings bathed in the same color, and a tail of striking feathers equally as white as it's plume. It gave a musical chirp, staring at him briefly before turning at the sky. Roxas stared at the beautiful bird as it preened its wings, and abruptly, it hopped onto his desk, ruffling its tail feathers. His breath hitched; he didn't want to scare it away as it hopped a step closer, looked at him, then it settled down, sitting half way between he and the edge of his desk. What was he going to do? He had never seen a bird like this one before and he didn't want it to fly away just yet. Carefully and quietly, he took his sketchbook book out and began a quick sketch of the bird. His computer gave another tone and he saw a message pop up.
R u there, kid?
It was Xigbar.
Roxas stopped his sketch for a moment, typing slowly.
Just a second, I'm trying to draw this bird...
Kewl, lol. I'll be here.
Roxas' pencil scratched on the paper as he finished the bird's plume and tail feathers, nearly done. The colors were so vibrant and amazing... he was sure he wouldn't forget them when he colored the sketch; he would never forget the bird. If he set up another meeting with Xigbar, hopefully he could show the man the drawing. He wished he could take a photo but that would likely scare the bird away. The bird didn't move an inch as Roxas finished the drawing, curling the tail feathers just like the bird in front of him.
"A-ha.." Roxas mumbled to himself as he set the sketchbook down, completely satisfied with his drawing. He thought the bird would fly away when he began typing but it only moved a few tiny steps away.
I'm finished, Xigbar.
Kewl. How r u?
I'm fine. You?
Doing cool, kid. Went and got some paints.
If you don't mind me asking, what of?
A old friend.
Ah. And could you stop calling me kid? I'm seventeen.
Gotcha... kiddo, lol.
Roxas scowled, raising a eyebrow; he could just imagine Xigbar chuckling.
Xigbar..
I won't, hehe. So, wanna do random q's? Or my job, ya seemed interested.
Sure... It's just that I've never talked to a detective.
No prob. Anything specific?
Roxas thought for a moment, looking over at the bird which inched away before looking at him. What to ask now? He had already checked the article out and searched Xigbar up, so what now? Personally, he was sure Xigbar was a good person, but one could never be too careful.
How long had everyone been there?
Snow had been there before me, Cap even before him, Zell was new, Kiros same time as me and Lightning was there a a bit before me.
Oh okay... Who was your captain?
Guy name Ward, and he was super tall. So, random q. Do u have a pet?
Ah... No, but I wanted one at one time. Maybe a dog...
Roxas paused as the tiny message box that said a person was typing came up for Xigbar, and he took a moment to look at the bird that as soon as he looked, hopped away a inch, staring at him. What a strange little bird. Every time he looked, the bird moved like it was suspicious of him. He gave a small laugh as another bird outside squawked and the bird sitting on his desk whirled around, seemingly angry; strange. He stretched again as text from Xigbar appeared.
Kewl. I used to want a snake, lol.
Hey, did you live anywhere before Twilight Town?
Nope. Lived here.
Well, a random question for you... what's your current job?
I sell art sometimes. Main stuff is part-time delivery around here. Kewl hours, good pay, and time for art. ;P
That's pretty nice. Want to do.. random questions now?
Sure, ahaha. Fav type movie?
I like comedies or science fiction. You?
Horror and action, lol. U read?
Yeah, I like to read a lot.
Not me, haha. I just do art, liek working out, listen to music, and play video games.
Same really. I do art and play video games. I do poetry some. I listen to music a lot, and talk with friends or go out with them. You work out?
Yea. Got so used to doing it during training and stuff, just do it to keep shape and habit. Kewl. I don't got many friends, ahaha.
You don't?
Nah, lol. It's cool. brb, needs a snack ;p
Roxas sighed as he took the chance to stand; he was somewhat hungry as well and he hadn't eaten since the school lunch. Hopefully while he went to get a snack, Sora wouldn't sneak in and read his messages. They hadn't talked about anything wrong but he still didn't like when his twin peeked. It was a invasion of privacy. He yawned as he exited his room and made sure to close the door, heading down the stairs towards the kitchen.
"Hiya, Roxas!" Sora greeted him cheerfully from the living room, the brunette sitting in front of the TV like a small child."Mom had to run to the store to get some stuff for dinner. How's the chat going? No bad pictures?"
Roxas sighed,"Hey. And no pictures at all, Sora. I swear..."
"What about when you two start dating?" Sora giggled.
"Don't make me hit you a third time, Sora." Roxas stated as he opened the refrigerator, searching for a possible snack, but he didn't find anything he might have wanted; he didn't want cereal, or a sandwich, or anything... Maybe just some chips. He moved to his left and opened the first cabinet above him, moving a few cracker and tea boxes aside to see where the chips were. They weren't there, which meant Sora or his father probably moved them. He looked in the next two cabinets but he was unsuccessful.
"Sora, did you move the chips again?" Roxas called out.
"Maybe.. I think they're in the cabinet above the stove..."
Roxas went to where his twin specified, opening the cabinets; the chips were exactly where his brother left them. Taking them and sitting them on the counter, Roxas moved to the cabinet next to where the chips were, grabbing a while bowl with a blue stripe. He opened the bag and poured some into the bowl before putting the bag of chips in the right cabinet. Grabbing it, he popped a chip into his mouth as he headed back to his room.
"Don't send-" Sora was about to make the joke again but he was cut off.
"Shut up, Sora!"
Sora began laughing, falling back onto his back at his twin's reaction; he could just imagine Roxas blushing. Roxas hurried to his room to avoid anymore jokes.
As he stepped into his room, door closing, he saw a message pop onto the screen. Then he looked at his desk, where the blue bird was still sitting on his desk, though it was perched on the edge. He watched as he looked at him with those intense eyes before flying out of his window, plume and tail feathers ruffling in the wind. He got a drawing of the bird, but he wished it hadn't left; it was beautiful, but, it was a wild animal. It was free to come and go. It was odd, it trusted him enough to sit near him, yet every time he looked at it, it moved away. Roxas looked at the message.
U there, kid?
He quickly sat and began typing.
Yeah, went and got a snack too.
Lol, thought you left, haha.
No, I'm still here. So... have you been to any place besides Twilight Town?
Yep. Hollow Bastion on a few cases and to Atlantica to visit my bro. You?
Hollow Bastion to visit my cousin. You have a brother?
Yeah my younger bro Braig. Don't see him lots, he's a fisher so he's gone all the time.
Wow... I've never been to that city before. Is it nice?
I guess. I like Twilight Town better, lol.
Haha. What's your favorite place here?
Sunset Terrace. Like to sit on the hill.
I don't go there often.
U should. Sunset looks pretty awesome from there, haha.
Yeah, maybe so.
Random q for u.. What's your dream job?
Hmm... that's a tough one. Either a marine biologist, professional artist, or something like that... Haven't thought about it. Have you ever shot anyone?
Thos are pretty awesome. Ah, a bunch of times. Perps who tried to get away, protect my partner, man.. more times than I can count, lol.
Xigbar... would you be willing to meet up with me again, later this week maybe?
Sure, kid. I'm free on Wednesday and Thursday.
I'm free on Wednesday also, school's out because of a holiday.
Kewl. Wanna meet at the lake in the park?
The hidden lake, right?
Yep.
Yeah, that'll be good with me. Well, I have to go now, it's almost dinner.
Gotcha kiddo. See ya Wednesday!
Bye, Xigbar.
Right after Roxas typed his message, a box popped up, signaling Xigbar was offline now. He gave a small sigh as he leaned back, his heart beating with excitement he wasn't aware of. Stretching his arms out, he took his sketchbook and flipped the cover back over the sketch to make sure he didn't get anything on it before it was colored. He closed MSN out on his computer, looking at the clock; it read five forty-six p.m. Standing, he shut his laptop off with a yawn, looking at the sunset of orange, purple, and pink before he went ahead and closed his window. He looked out over Twilight Town, blinking slowly.
After talking to the man again, Roxas was sure he wasn't suspicious anymore. If Xigbar had been a pedophile, he would have tried something when they were instant messaging, he was sure of it, but nothing happened. Just a composed conversation between two people. He felt the slightest bit foolish when he thought about how suspicious he was but he best forget about it until Wednesday; he was definitely going to apologize for thinking Xigbar was a pedophile and lying; saying it online and not face to face would have made him a coward and he didn't want to considered as a coward nor did he want to offend the scarred man, at all. When he looked down in his heart, he was excited to have a possible friendship with Xigbar. He gave a sigh as he left his room, passing Sora's door.
"Hiya, Roxas!"
Roxas jumped at his twin's sudden voice, whirling around.
"Sora, don't scare me like that..." Roxas scowled.
"Big baby," Sora stuck his tongue out, grinning."I bet you got a date."
Roxas just walked away without saying a word, Sora jogging behind him. He knew Sora was a joker but this was a bit much. He wanted to be friends with Xigbar, not date. He blushed, trying to keep the thoughts away; they weren't disturbing but it was wrong and well, it was wrong... He just gave up on thinking as he walked down the stairs, Sora following him like a lost puppy. He knew that his father wasn't home and that irritated him. Was work more important than his family? He didn't think is father thought that, but that's what it appeared to be and that bothered him. And when he was home, his mother and father fought often; nothing loud or violent, but he could always hear it... but he had his brother, so he wasn't so lonely. As he strolled into the kitchen, he saw his mother cooking pasta and he could smell the delicious herbs and tomato sauce wafting around the room. There was a surprise for them, and they collectively raised there eyebrows at their father, Cloud, who turned to them with a weary smile
'"I was wondering where you two were." Tifa said, giving her sons a grin.
"Dad!" Sora ran up and hugged his father tight, Roxas coming in for a short hug after his twin.
"It's good to finally see you all. Work's been such a hassle..." Cloud sighed as he sat down at the table.
Roxas and Sora gave a smile as they grabbed their plates from the table, moving to the stove. Each one of them spooned pasta onto their plate, Sora eagerly staring at the steaming spagetti as they sat down again.
"So, did you two have a good day?" Tifa asked as she got her own plate of spagetti."And Roxas, I didn't get the chance to ask you about your second little meeting with... what did you say his name was?
Roxas raised a eyebrow at his mother. Strange... she hardly ever forgot anything, let alone a name. "His name is Xigbar, Mom. And it went great, but we had to cut it off short since Xigbar got called into work suddenly."
"Who's this Xigbar?" Cloud asked with no emotion on his face but concern in his blue eyes.
"A cool artist I met in the park." Roxas explained, not wanting to give up any more information about the events. He didn't like to lie to his parents but he didn't want them to find out what he thought; that would ruin Xigbar.
Cloud considered the information at hand. He didn't like his son meeting strangers in the park, even if he was around other people."And how old is this Xigbar?"
"He's twenty seven," Roxas said, and he knew where this line of questioning was going."He used to be a police detective."
"I see..." Cloud nodded."What does he look like?"
Roxas nearly hit his head on the table; first his mom, now his dad. Why did they have to be so protective? He could understand being protective of someone you loved but this was a bit much... He got why his Dad was asking about Xigbar's appearance but it almost sounded to him like his father was trying to find out to determine whether the man was bad; appearance didn't matter with pedophiles, they could be anyone.
"He's like over six foot five, he has black hair in streaks of grey in a ponytail, he has one gold eye, a eyepatch, and a large scar on on his right cheek," Roxas sighed.
"Hmm... He seems creepy, even if he used to be a cop. I don't think you should-" Cloud stated. His father might as well be stereotyping Xigbar by his appearance, something that wasn't even his fault. In fact, he was stereotyping the man and he didn't like that.
"He's not creepy." Roxas stated angrily, halfway finished with his pasta. The table went silent, and his twin gave him a knowing look.
"He seems like it. What if he lied? What if it's just so he can do something to you?" Cloud asked with eyes narrowed.
"He didn't. And I know because he was in the paper nearly two years ago when he got injured." Roxas' brow furrowed, setting his fork down next to his plate.
"He was?"
"Yes. I saw it on the Twilight Town Post's site." Roxas sighed.
"I still don't like it." Cloud answered finally after a brief period of silence.
"Neither do I." Tifa agreed, and Roxas got even angrier.
"He's a good guy. Stop treating him like the criminals he worked hard to put away." Roxas found the words pouring out his mouth, his guilt twitching inside him and he felt like he was going to vomit; he was being hypocritical. At first, he though Xigbar was a pedophile out to get him and now, he was defending the man against his father and mother who thought the same, something he found to surely be a lie. "I know you're trying to protect but I'm fine. I'm going to my room."
Sora, Tifa, and Cloud were silent as Roxas rose and pushed his chair in, face filled with irritation and hidden guilt that shone in his cerulean eyes. As Sora took his twin's plate and scraped the leftover pasta onto his even though he had worry on his face, they heard Roxas stomp up the stairs. Something was up with his brother... and had had a feeling that it had to do with Xigbar. He knew in his heart that Roxas hadn't been attacked or had something said to him. Maybe it had to do with the jokes he made about Xigbar and him going on dates? Normally his brother wouldn't act so flustered or blush so hard with a joke like that... He was concerned and wanted to ask his twin what was wrong but he figured he should give him some time alone.
As soon as Roxas closed the door to his room, he flopped on his bed back first, scowling. He wished everyone would quit thinking bad or weird things about Xigbar... including himself. When he thought Xigbar's name or about his smile, he got this weird feeling that resonated throughout his body and made his heart twitch; Sora's jokes weren't helping either. Roxas blushed at the thought. Xigbar and he weren't going on a date, it was just a friendly meeting. But he had to admit, Xigbar was handsome and good looking, funny, cool, tall, strong... He flinched when he found himself drooling, wiping away the thick substance quickly; he... he wasn't attracted to Xigbar or anything...Sighing, he turned on his side, facing the wall. He ran a hand through his hair, guilt in his mind. He couldn't wait for Wednesday, not just because he was going to see Xigbar, but he was going to admit his assumption and maybe get rid of the hidden guilt twisting his gut into a knot.
Roxas lay on his bed silently and he heard a door close; it must have been Sora. For some reason, his parents non-verbally assuming Xigbar was bad got him angry and bothered even though he himself did at one point. He sighed, fidgeting furiously. He hated lying more than anything and he hated that he lied to Xigbar; the words and his actions kept circling his mind like a movie on repeat. He wished that it was Tuesday so that tomorrow he would wake up and be able to go see Xigbar, but Roxas had to calm himself. It was only one day of school until the meeting...
