And, so we have another chapter~ Wooh~ Not a lot to say really, except that it took me a little while because I was trying to finish one of my stories on deviantart.

Anyway, thanks to those of you who reviewed. Much love and an imaginary cookie for you~

((Demyx))

"You'll be okay in here, won't you?" He nods slowly, only his head visible above the blanket he has wrapped around himself, trailing along the ground. I wonder why he won't just let me go and get him another blanket. He has to be cold, even though he says he isn't. Why else would he be wrapped up like that?

"I'll be fine." I sigh inwardly. He'll be fine; he keeps saying that. I wish he would just tell me that he wants something…I mean, he did eat the soup that he asked for, but he hasn't wanted anything else since then. It's been two days already since I found him and I don't know next to nothing about him. He's nineteen. He doesn't want me to call anyone. And, it seems like he has nowhere to go…Why can't he just trust me a little bit? I must sound so selfish…it's his business what he tells me and what he doesn't. It's not my place to pry, but, still, I want to know more about him. It's like I need to know more.

"Oh, umm, alright then. I'll be at the end of the hall if you need anything. If I'm asleep, you can wake me up; I'm a light sleeper so it shouldn't be too hard. And…yeah. You know where the bathroom is and you can help yourself to the kitchen and the phone if you change your mind about wanting to call someone." Zexion nods again, shuffling past me and crawling onto the guest bed that I set up for him.

"I'll be fine, Demyx." I bite my lower lip, watching him curl up underneath the blankets, including the one he's already had, and turn away from me.

"Umm, okay. Good-night then." He doesn't say anything back to me, not that I had expected him to. He doesn't really talk to me unless he wants to. That's fine. It's not like I'm going to force him to talk to me or anything. But, he just…seems so lonely.

_____

"Really, Axel, everything's fine." I happily say into the phone's microphone, my voice hush-hushed as I continue to secretly stare around the corner that leads to my living room. I can hear Axel practically growl on the other side of the line.

"If everything's just fine, then why are you whispering?!" I sigh. Why can't he just listen to me and take my word for it when I say that everything's okay? We're not little kids anymore; he doesn't have to protect me.

"Because he'll wake up." Axel doesn't say anything for a while. It's like his side of the line has gone completely dead. He's probably angry at me again, but what does he want me to do? I can't change who I am, even if he thinks it would be for the better. Zexion's sleeping on the couch, curled up like an embryo again and…I just don't want him to wake up. I know he's tired. I was up all night last night listening to him toss and turn just down the hall. He needs his sleep; I shouldn't carelessly take it away by talking too loud. That wouldn't be right, not when I want him to want to stay here.

If that's even what I really want.

"Fine, then. I'll see you in an hour." An hour…he'll see me in an hour. He'll see me in an hour…

"Wait, why? Axel, really, everything's okay. You don't have to come down here or anything. We'll be fine. I'll be fine. And, he's actua-"

"Can it, Dem. I'll be there in an hour to see how fine everything is for myself. You remember what happened the last time you said everything was fuckin' peachy, don't you?" I wince, pulling the phone away from my ear. Yes, of course I remember what happened last time. Last time I'd brought a drug addict home. I didn't know it. The girl just looked so sweet. How was I supposed to know that Selphie was really a drug addict? How was I supposed to know that she would turn my house into a hot spot for dealers? How was I supposed to know that I would end up arrested, with no one to turn to but Axel? How was I supposed to know any of that?

"That's not fair, Axel. You know I wouldn't have let any of that happen if I had known about it. I would've-"

"You would've gotten another job to go with the one you've already got and tried to put the girl through rehab, even though you didn't know her. Yeah, Dem, I know." I bite my bottom lip, nibbling on it just a bit. Well, when he puts it like that it doesn't sound very good, but what else could I have done? I wouldn't have just left her like that. I hear a sigh followed by a click and a puff of air. I know that sound; he just lit a cigarette. I know it. "Listen, I'll be there in an hour and then I'll check things out for myself. Okay?"

"Yeah, fine, just…try to be quiet, okay?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say, Dem. I'll see you soon, bye."

"Bye." Sighing, I put the phone back on its cradle. I know he's just worried about me, but couldn't he at least trust me enough to let me make my own mistakes? I mean, sure, things haven't always gone so great and my judgment of people has always been a little off, but that doesn't mean he has to keep picking up after me all the time. Feeling slightly drained, I plop down on the living room floor, my oceanic eyes watching the only interesting thing in the room.

Zexion.

All curled up like an embryo, only one side of his face and a mop of slate hair visible from beneath the blanket, he doesn't look like he could cause me any harm, like he could do anything to me. He just looks…like a child. Like a tired, lonely child.

((Zexion))

"Please, Axel, just be quiet. He's sleeping. Please."

"Dem, I came here to talk, not to watch him sleep again."

"Please…" I groan a little, sinking farther into the covers. I feel like I'm underwater, listening to distorted voices, my lungs struggling for air, my ears struggling to hear just a bit more. I know Demyx is talking. I know his voice: peppy, bubbly, concerned. I've heard enough for the last two days. I don't know the other one at all. It's gruffer, less controlled…less sympathetic. That's fine. I'm not here for sympathies or anything at all really. I'm only here because there's nowhere else for me to go, because nobody wants me. Not that I can really blame them. Hell, I don't even want me.

"Okay, wake up." My entire body tenses as the blanket is ripped away from me. A small whimper passes my lips as I try to curl up a little more. Cold, why is everything always so damn cold?

"Axel! Why did you do that?!" Sluggishly, I sit up, wrapping my arms around my legs and pulling them to my chest as firmly as I can. It's cold…so, so cold everywhere. I watch through one eye as the one named Axel battles off what looks to be a furious Demyx. He looks so very strange. His hair is just a shade too red, just a bit too long. His body just isn't the right size to be human…too tall, too skinny. And, those eyes. Is it even possible for human beings to have acid green eyes? Apparently, it is.

"Hey, I want have a little chat with you." The redhead finally says once he has Demyx under control, his arms firmly wrapped around the blond's waist, a glare set on his face, even though it looks a bit too childish on someone like him to be very intimidating.

"That's fine."

"Yeah, okay, whatever. Tell me something, you into any 'candy'?"

"Axel!" Demyx struggles against him, while Axel just smirks. They look like two…brothers. Of course, brothers who just so happen to look absolutely nothing alike, but…

"What do you mean by 'candy'?" My head cocks to the side, my entire face visible for only an instant. One fleeting instant. They both look at me like I've lost my mind. Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. I wouldn't really know.

"Like drugs? Heroine? LSD? The works?" I scrunch my nose up at the possibilities, causing him to laugh. Humph, I'm not trying to be funny.

"That stuff is disgusting."

"That it is. Ever killed anyone?" Demyx practically hides his face in his hands. Killed anyone…why on earth would he ask me something like that? Do I look like a murderer?

"No."

"Good. How about-"

"Axel, leave him alone. Hasn't he passed enough of your stupid test?" Demyx cuts him off, strange eyes narrowed. He's…mad. I've never seen him mad. It doesn't suit him, not at all.

"Test…?" He's testing me…he's just like everyone else. Everyone else who's wanted something from me… He must be, why else would he test me?

"But, of course, Dem-Dem over here could've let a serial killer in without even realizing it. Of course, you could just be lying, but it's just a formality, if you will." I nod, like that makes complete sense, even though really, to me, it makes none at all. Why would someone even ask me questions like that if I could be lying to them? Why wouldn't they just kick me out and keep themselves safe from me? Wouldn't that just be easier than forcing themselves to put up with me? Wouldn't that just make more sense?

"Axel, I think I would have figured out if he was a serial killer by now! I'm not that bad at reading people!" Axel doesn't say anything; he just smirks, slowly letting Demyx go. The blond just sighs, taking a seat beside me on the couch, looking at me apologetically. No…he can't be looking at me like that. I must be misinterpreting. No one ever apologizes to me. No one ever cares for me. No one ever…they just don't…why is he so damn confusing? If he were anyone else, anyone normal, he would've gotten rid of me by now. He wouldn't have brought me here at all. I would've died three nights ago out in the fucking rain. I wouldn't have to worry about these types of things. I would have never met anyone who…actually seemed to care about me. Who made me think that maybe I hadn't really wanted to die in the first place. That maybe I've been completely wrong about everything. That maybe I just had the wrong parents, the wrong friends, the wrong relationships. That maybe, just maybe I'm not really the one who's wrong. If he wouldn't have found me, none of this would be happening! I wouldn't even be here!

"Hey, emo, you okay over there?" I blink, looking up at Axel, his form standing right over me. He smiled cockily, like that was the only way he knew how to be, but it wasn't a bad kind of cocky. Not like my old boyfriends, but sweeter in a way. "Whoa, zoned much? I asked if you were okay." Slowly, I nod, even though I have no idea why he would wonder if I'm okay or not. I'm not his problem. I'm not his concern. Why should he care? Really, he shouldn't. It just doesn't make any sense to me. "Okay, since you answered my questions, how about you ask me any question you like?"

I only get one question, even though there are millions buzzing around in my head. Why do you and Demyx sound like you care about me? Do you know why Demyx brought me home, for there must have been a reason? What do the two of you want from me? In the end, I settled on the one I wanted to know the most.

"Is that your real hair color?"

And, so we have Axel~ ^-^

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