When Namine left the house the next morning, summer's sting was still lingering. It was so early and already the humidity was too much to bear. She tugged at the collar of her school dress, fervently wishing Destiny High School had a swimming class.
As the blonde girl started walking down the street, her still-despondent neighbour caught up to her. When the timing allowed the two would walk to school together, but Roxas often slept in too long and Namine refused to wait for him.
"Hey," he greeted, sounding a little flat. Namine patted his shoulder sympathetically.
"I know you're bummed about our first dance class today, but cheer up! You've also got music today, right?"
"How'd you know?" He asked curiously, and Namine pointed to the drum sticks poking out the top of his backpack. "Oh, right. I guess..."
"Come on, dance is only for one period today. We won't even be dancing."
"Just knowing it's coming is bad enough. What do I even wear to a dance class?"
"Maybe a leota-"
"Don't!" Roxas shouted, and Namine laughed. Clearly Sora, Riku and Axel's teasing wasn't going to subside anytime soon. He relaxed under her giggles and managed a wry smile.
"At least I'm not alone in the class. I could do without Selphie though..." He teased with a grin.
"Don't worry, she stops her chitter-chatter when she's dancing!" Namine assured, knocking into Roxas' side to appease his teasing tone. Roxas turned slightly pink at the collision, and turned his head away in what Namine assumed was despondency.
x-x-x
Namine and Selphie were practically bolting towards the music and theatre block of the school, eager to find out who their teacher was. Roxas lingered back, gingerly holding his books and looking forlornly at the year 9 building. Right now, Sora was in drama, Hayner were in woodwork class, and Pence was in I.T. - where the blonde boy should have been. He watched the girls ahead of him gaggling and using fancy dance terms he'd never heard of, and grimaced.
Selphie practically burst the door open when they arrived at their classroom, a large studio with hardwood flooring, protective mats, and a wall adorned with large mirrors. She and Namine squealed in delight - their teacher was Miss Lockhart, who had been their year 8 homeroom teacher. She not only taught general studies but sport as well, and was incredibly athletic. During the sports carnival last year, she had challenged Mr. Strife to an arm wrestle and the two were at it for what felt like hours.
"Hey, girls!" She greeted enthusiastically, and her face contorted somewhat when Roxas entered the fray. "Oh, Roxas! I didn't expect that!" At his obviously abhorrent expression, she laughed and added, "Don't worry, there are other boys enrolled too."
The girls dragged Roxas over to the mats where they sat and waited for class to start. Serah and Vanille came in next, giggling when they saw Roxas, and sat near the girls. Roxas groaned. He wondered exactly which boys were joining when the next lot of students came in; Marlene, Yuna, Rikku, Garnet, Shiki, Neku, Vatinas and Ven. Finally, some guys! He waved them over and they joined him. He knew Neku was into hip hop, but he was surprised by Ventus, and Vanitas especially. The stark-haired boy didn't seem much interested in anything.
"See, Roxas, you're not the only guy!" Namine elbowed him gently, and he smiled awkwardly.
"Yeah, but that doesn't make dancing any easier."
Miss Lockhart hushed the class as a few more straggling girls came in and joined the group. "Alright, guys and gals! Welcome to dance! It's important to remember that we're learning both theory and practical dance! Your major assessments include an essay on a style of dance, so take notes! We'll also be doing partner work, so I'm glad there are enough guys in here!" The guys groaned. "And at the end of year we'll be doing some choreography for the Year 9 Create Festival."
Namine and Selphie clapped their hands together in excitement. A festival just for their year level!
"Our first lesson today will just be going over different genres and definitions. Tomorrow is our first double period, which means dancing! Girls, leggings and dance wear, boys, shirts and tracksuits will be fine. Now, onto the genres..."
As Miss Lockhart began writing different genres on the board, Roxas fretted over their next lesson. It was true that he was athletic, but this was nothing like basketball or soccer - this was pointing toes and spinning and god knows what else. When he looked back up, he saw the list of genres and his anxiety tripled.
"Tap? Ballet? Contemporary?" He struggled, not even really knowing what that genre was. "Do we really have to dance in all these styles!?"
Namine ruffled his blonde locks. "We'll probably just trial a little bit of each but end up practicing the genre we like best. Come on, you might like hip hop or jazz!"
"Jazz? Really?"
Selphie looked up from her rigorous note-taking to wave her hands about and add, "Jazz hands!"
Roxas threw his head into his hands and groaned.
x-x-x
"So, how was your first dance lesson?" Sora teased at lunch later that day. The gang were gathered in their favourite 'usual spot', a small nook between the oval and the basketball courts with wooden seating. Sometimes the boys would play a game while the girls gossiped on the benches.
"Don't start, Sora." Roxas sighed. "Neku was there too, y'know. And Ven and Vanitas."
Hayner almost choked on his salad roll. "I can see Neku there, but Vanitas!? I didn't know he was capable of anything that requires you to show human emotion."
"Be nice," Olette smacked Hayner on the chest.
"You guys, we're gonna remake Roxas," Selphie added confidently, "by the end of the year he could qualify for So You Think You Can Dance."
"No, I won't!" Roxas attempted to cover Selphie's mouth, but the damage was done and Sora and Hayner were laughing loudly. "Shut up!"
Namine rolled her eyes, but in truth she was a little worried about Roxas. Since Miss Lockhart had announced there'd be partner work, she was worried she might get partnered with him. She adored Roxas, but she didn't want her grades to be in jeopardy if Roxas winded up being a terrible dancer. After all, how could she showcase her beautiful dancing if Roxas stood on her toes?
Her thoughts ebbed away as the gang enjoyed their lunch together. This was her favourite time of the school day, because everyone joked and laughed and enjoyed each others' company. Plus it was a much better opportunity to talk to Sora, instead of getting caught in class. She watched as he jostled with Hayner and encouraged Pence, and smiled at his genuine good nature. He caught her gaze and smiled at her, and she gave a nervous smile in return before looking away, hoping everyone would think her blushed cheeks were simply sunburn.
"Oh yeah! How was drums, Roxas?" Olette perked up after the conversation died down, and Roxas smiled fully for the first time.
"It was great! The teacher thinks I'll do good in the exams. I'm still nervous though."
Namine chortled. She was tempted to say 'Believe me, I know. I hear you every day' but thought better of it. She knew he'd become self-conscious.
"Are you gonna play at the Create Festival?" Selphie asked, the festival still bright in her mind.
"Maybe..."
"Our artwork will be at the festival," Olette smiled at Namine, and Namine suddenly felt a nervous knot in the pit of her belly. Dancing in front of everyone would be easy, but showcasing her artwork would be much more embarrassing.
"And so will our production!" Kairi nodded, and Sora fist-pumped the air. The two had joined the drama class, which Namine wasn't surprised by. They simply exuded confidence.
"Do you know what play you'll be doing this year?" Pence asked, polishing off his bundt cake.
"Not sure yet. I think it's a choice between Guys and Dolls or High School Musical."
The guys grimaced and Kairi scoffed. "Come on! High school musical was great!"
"Uh-huh," Hayner said sarcastically, and the gang simply laughed. "Anyway, who wants to shoot some hoops?"
Namine watched as Hayner, Roxas and Sora jumped up to play a quick game, and she gladly watched while the girls giggled about Troy Bolton. Her eyes were on Sora the whole time; his adorable look of concentration, his cheesy grin when he scored a goal, and the way his shirt would lift up when he shot for goal, revealing an inch of golden stomach. She felt the knots in her stomach unfurl into butterflies as she watched.
She was so focused on Sora, she didn't notice Roxas occasionally gazing her way, with a look of frustration and jealousy.
x-x-x
The final period of the day was maths, and the girls were busy getting stuck into their work while the guys were idly chatting and scribbling on their work books. Math was not their strong point.
Suddenly, Sora raised his hand and asked if he could go to the bathroom. The school system only allowed this if students went with a buddy, so he nominated Roxas, and the blonde begrudgingly followed him out of the classroom, and into the sunshine.
"Couldn't you have asked Hayner?" Roxas drawled as he followed the spiky-haired boy. His expression changed when he noticed how nervous Sora looked. "Er... are you okay?"
"I need to ask you something," Sora said quickly, and Roxas followed him around the corner, into the shade. There was no one around and Sora sighed. "I need some advice."
"What's up?" Roxas asked, genuinely worried. Sora was always happy and smiling, but he was fidgeting and clearly had a lot on his mind.
"Um... So, you know how I've liked Kairi since, like, forever, right?"
Roxas rolled his eyes. "Since you met at year 7 orientation."
"Right. Well, I never did anything because I always thought she had a crush on Riku. Y'know, cause he's older and stronger and musclier..."
"Right..." Roxas nodded slowly, not liking where this was going.
"Well, lately I've been thinking... I just have to tell her. It's getting too hard being around her and not being able to talk about it. And after this summer... I'm starting to think that she might like me too. So... I'm gonna tell her."
Roxas hesitated a few seconds before answering. He had never really expected Sora to act on his crush, but he had to admit that he'd noticed it too... on their many summer outings to the beach or the amusement park, Kairi and Sora were getting closer than ever, but there was still an air of tumultuous uncertainty about it all. He was happy for his friend, truly... but there was a little problem with all of this.
Roxas knew that Namine had a crush on Sora.
It would completely break her heart if Sora asked Kairi out. She was head over heels for him! Roxas knew he couldn't stop Sora from asking Kairi out, but he wanted to protect Namine more than anything. How could he do that, though?
"Really? That's great, Sora. I think she feels the same way too," Roxas assured, and Sora smiled widely at this. "So... when do you think you'll do it?"
"I'm not sure yet. I want to make it really special, so I have to think about it... that's why I wanted to ask you. Do you think you could help me come up with a really nice way of asking her out?"
Roxas scratched the back of his neck nervously. "I'd love to help, Sora, but I'm not so good at that stuff..."
"Oh come on, you haven't even tried anything with Namine yet," Sora slapped his friend's arm, and Roxas blushed something fierce. "Just think of some ideas, okay? I'll need all the help I can get."
"Alright... I'll be rooting for you either way."
"Thanks Roxas, you're a great friend." Sora smiled, and Roxas felt a tinge of guilt. "Let's head back."
Roxas kept a watchful eye on Namine for the rest of the afternoon. She was completely oblivious to Sora's feelings... but maybe he had time to change her mind before Sora broke her heart.