A/N – Here's Chapter 4
As soon as I walked into the art room a cute blonde girl called my name. When she smiled and waved I knew she had been the one to call me over. A grin was plastered onto my face as I practically skipped over to her. A cute American girl calling me over? It was what I always wanted! I sat down across from her at an art table.
"I'm Naminé." She explained, holding out her hand to me. I shook it softly. Now that we were friends I could greet her the French way...hehehe... "How do you like America so far, Roxas?" She asked me in that sweet, singsong voice of hers. It was beautiful!
"It is very nice. I do not enjoy McDonald's, though." I frowned, remembering my early morning breakfast experience with Hayner. McDonald's should change their slogan from Over 1 Billion served to: Over 1 Billion Arteries Clogged. Yuck.
Naminé giggled at my joke. I felt like I could puff out my chest and pretend to be a super hero then. I felt so esteemed when I made her laugh! "Not many people like McDonald's here either." She said, smiling.
I opened my mouth to say something back to her, when a certain redheaded fool decided to join the conversation. He sat down next to me and opened his mouth, cutting me short. "Sooooo Naminé, who else is coming tonight?" Axel asked. Again with that stupid music thing? He just wouldn't shut up about it, would he?
"I don't know. I don't think Demyx has invited anyone." Naminé tapped her chin thoughtfully. It was the most adorable thing I had ever seen! I smiled softly at her, trying to block out the green-eyed menace.
"You're coming, right?" Axel asked. At this moment I felt totally left out of the conversation. I didn't want to go to this thing and I didn't know what to say.
"Of course." She smiled at him. Her smile was amazing! I wish she would smile like that at me all the time!
It was only a few seconds after she had responded to his question that it hit me. She was going to this...thing of Axel's? Well, if she was going then I must go as well! I made up my mind right then and there that I would tag along and see what this music thing was all about! Well, actually it was just to get closer to her, but I could go under the disguise that I really cared.
"So Roxas, do you like coffee?" Axel asked me. I finally looked back at him. He was drawing some...stuff on a piece of paper. Moron.
"It...is alright." I mumbled. I really didn't want to talk to him. I wish Naminé had asked me!
"So, got any hobbies?" He kept on asking. I really did wish Naminé had asked me.
"Well..." I thought for a moment. "I do not really have any hobbies. In France I have no time for hobbies." It was true. All I did was school, homework, or hang out with my friends. That was busy enough for me!
"Soo...what do you do?" He asked. God damn it. I really wish he would stop talking to me!
I thought for another moment. "Watch TV?" It was really all I had done while I was in America. Damn that MTV and its addictiveness! (Excusez mon francais.)
"I'll bet we'll be able to find you something to do here." He gave me a thumbs up. What did that mean? I cocked an eyebrow at the thumbs. Strange American boys with their silly sign language! I was about to tell him a thing or two about hand gestures when a clicking sound was heard. It came softly, almost silently, and yet it made the whole class settle down. Everyone looked to the front.
The man standing there had flowing raven hair, pale skin, and a frown set across his face. He seemed pretty enough of a man, but what kind of self respecting man would let their hair grow out that long? It was unnatural. But, I digress, this was my teacher and I would have to respect him even if he didn't have respect for himself.
"Alright class." The man started and I focused on his mouth. Wow. The curves of his mouth were just perfect. Why must he frown so much if he had such a beautiful mouth? Surely it looked better with a smile. "I'm Mr. Valentine. I'll be your art teacher this year." He paused and looked at the class, as if he were evaluating us for what we were worth. Technically I'm worth more since I'm imported. I leaned my chin on my hand and listened, not really paying attention. If I got in trouble I would blame it on how I couldn't translate that quickly. "In my class we don't do mini-projects, sketchbook assignments, or any of that rubbish. We will be working on a project for the whole semester. I will pick your partners at random so don't even bother asking." ...Partners? I glanced around the class. Well, they all seemed nice enough. Anyone would be perfect as long as I wasn't with the redheaded creature sitting beside me.
"Alright." He began, seeming to have come to a conclusion of some sort. I looked back up to see him holding a tin can. What was this? I blinked a little and watched the can. Hm... He pulled out two slips of paper. "First pair is..." He unfolded them and read them. "Selphie and Tidus!" He exclaimed as the class snickered. What was so funny? From what I could see the girl was a brunette (and a bit on the cute side) and the boy should be happy for that.
Mr. Valentine shook the tin again and pulled out another piece of paper. "The next pair will be Axel and..." He had to pull out another piece of paper. I felt sorry for the poor person who had to be paired with him. "And...Roxas." I felt my eye twitch a little at that. Well, I suppose I would be in self pity for the rest of my American art class. Axel looked over at me, I suppose to judge my reaction. My eye lid twitched again and I rolled my eyes, willing the muscle spasm to stop. Axel turned away, frowning slightly. I rubbed my eye and finally the muscle stopped.
Mr. Vincent finished calling out the pairs that would be working on some sort of art thing together. Everyone seemed a bit on edge at the poor teacher. "Now this project can be of any medium and it's up to you to impress me. You'll have to work on it at home as well as in class." I took this time to inspect a pencil that had been lying on the table. It looked old and worn out. A classroom edition pencil, no doubt. Probably been used by several hundreds of students each day. I felt sorry for the poor thing. It must've felt like a prostitute...not that prostitutes are a bad thing.
"You know it works better if you put it on paper." Axel whispered to me. I kept my eyes trained on the pencil.
"It is weird looking." I told him, but what I didn't tell him was of The Adventures Of PP, the Pencil Prostitute. Ah, I like to daydream a bit.
"You're easily entertained, aren't you?" He asked, lifting one of those small, red eyebrows of his. They were so petite, and cute! They should have been on a girl.
"No..." I had to think about what he said. Easily entertained? I didn't really know what that meant but I went with it. "He," I nodded towards Mr. Valentine. "Just bores me."
"I totally agree with that. Do you know how to play Tic-Tac-Toe?" He asked. I had no idea what it was.
"No. What is it?" I asked, putting PP down.
"I'll show you." He pulled out a piece of paper and another pencil. "Okay, each person chooses to be the X's or the O's. I'll be O's I guess." He drew a grid on the paper. "So you get to pick a square put your letter in. Whoever gets three of the letters in a row wins the game." He explained. I understood what it was now.
"Oh. Okay." I said, waiting for him to give further instructions. We started the game shortly after that.
After a few moments had passed he looked up at me and asked, "Not so hard, huh?"
"No." I said slowly as I put an X below his O. Ha ha, no row for you mister!
"Thought so." He remarked as he drew an O. "But I win." I blinked at the paper. What? How could he have won? I studied the paper for a moment. Looks like he put them in a diagonal line. WHAT? I thought they had to be in rows across or down! That cheating little bastard! He didn't tell me on purpose!
He hit his head softly. "Oh, sorry. You can win diagonally too. Wanna restart?" He asked. I didn't want to play any kind of game with him ever again unless I knew all the rules...which meant I would probably have to play it before without him around. (He's a cheating bastard.)
"It is boring." I said, not wanting to come right out and tell him I didn't want anything else to do with him.
"So, do you want my phone number?" No I do not want your phone number, you cheating bastard.
"I do not have a phone." That was a lie. I had an international cell phone I could use to call my family. I just didn't want his phone number.
"Oh." He paused for a moment. "You should smile more."
I looked up at him, completely perplexed. Where did that come from? "Why?" I asked him, wanting to know what this outburst was all about.
"Because I like your smile. It's nice." He smiled at me.
I blushed softly. Look, a compliment is a compliment no matter who it comes from. And that was a very flattering compliment to get. "Thank you." I said softly.
"You know, I can hear you two." Naminé said, looking at us with a frown.
"You really are Kairi's twin, aren't you?" Axel said, trying to pout. He was too...I guess, developed to pout. Only cute little people could pout. Like Naminé! I bet she had an adorable pout.
"She has a twin?" I asked, looking up at Axel, blinking.
He laughed slightly. "No, but my sister and Naminé are a lot alike." He answered.
"Oh." I paused. "I was going to say," I turned to Naminé. "you and I have something in common."
"Really? You have a twin?" She asked, smiling brightly at me. Really, she was just too cute!
"Oui, mademoiselle." I smiled back at her. The French had just kind of slipped out.
"Really?" The redhead fiend asked beside me. "What's his name?"
"Yes." I nodded. "His name is Ven." I smiled. They both looked so interested in my brother! Ven would have loved to meet them...At least he would have loved to meet Naminé. He was a sucker for cute blonde American girls too.
"Axel, what are you thinking about?" Said cute blonde American girl asked. I turned to look at Axel.
"I SWEAR I DIDN'T DO IT!" He yelled right before falling out of the chair. Oh wow. What an idiot. I sighed and refused to look down.
"Mr. Thomas, do we have a problem?" Mr. Valentine asked.
"Yeah, the chairs here suck." Axel grumbled. Wow, someone's just digging themselves deeper and deeper.
"It wasn't the chair's fault." Naminé giggled. I smirked and laughed slightly at her little joke. Heh, it was a bit funny.
The bell rang. I looked upwards and then remembered. Oh yeah, I'm in an American school. Right. That means I get to go to my next class!
"Alright class, I'll see you tomorrow with an idea of what your projects will be on." Mr. Valentine said as a last minute notice. I stood and pulled on my messenger bag. They were all the rage in France. I could tell Axel was a little disgruntled so I didn't want to say anything to him. Might make him even more angry.
"What class do you have next, Roxas?" Naminé asked me. Right, she was supposed to be my guide to each class! Sweet!
"Er.." I had to open a few pockets in my messenger bag to find my schedule. "Gym class." I said, finally finding it.
"Aw! We don't have that together! I can show you the gym if you want." She offered. I smiled at her. She was too adorable!
"That would be kind of you." I answered.
"I have gym next period too!" A certain green eyed monster said.
"Oh!" Naminé exclaimed. "Then Axel, can show you the way. I'll see you later, Roxas." She smiled before leaving. Noo! Naminé! Don't leave me here! I frowned.
After a moment of silence Axel broke it. "Shall we?" He asked.
"Okay." I said, still frowning. I wanted Naminé to show me!
"Do I bother you?" He asked as we walked, sounding a tad annoyed at me.
"No." I answered. Which was the truth. He didn't get on my nerves...much. "You are just a little weird."
"How so?" He asked. I really didn't want to have this conversation.
"The way you greeted me was weird." I paused. "You have those things under your eyes and you fell out of your chair while yelling." Yes, that would do for an explanation.
"They're tattoos and Naminé caught me off guard." He pouted again. No pouting for tall people! "Okay, so what do you like about me?" He asked. Drat, I don't know!
"Um..." I thought then shrugged. I didn't have anything on the top of my head.
"Aw come on! There has to be something!" He urged. I still didn't know.
"Uh..." I looked up at him. "I like how tall you are."
"I like your eyes. They're really pretty." He returned. I quickly turned my head to the side, hiding a blush.
"Thank you." I replied.
"Axel!" Someone yelled before running up to Axel. I could tell he was running because I could feel a rush of air hit me as he passed by. I turned to see a..boy in Axel's arms. A boy yes, but he was a bit freaky looking. He had a mullet...Yuck.
"It's nice to see you too, Dem." Axel replied smiling. I just stood there, awkwardly. So, I spaced out a little bit.
Back to The Adventures Of PP, the Pencil Prostitute! When we last left her, PP was standing on the corner, a gun tucked behind her back. 'Just wait till that bastard drives up...' PP thought, glaring at every car that drove by.
There would have been more to that episode if a kid hadn't bumped into me and broke me out of my daydream. The mullet guy was looking at me.
"Hello.." I said, not really knowing what was going on.
"Oh! You're the exchange student! Nice to meet you." He turned back to Axel. "Hey Axel, you don't mind if I bring Zexion with me tonight, do you?"
"Nope." Axel answered, short and simple. Wait...There was something wrong with that request.
"Awesome!" The mullet gave Axel a quick kiss on the lips. Wait...did I miss something? "See you later!" He waved slightly and ran off. I blinked at him as Axel turned to me.
"Who was that?" I asked. I really didn't have any idea.
"Oh. That's my boyfriend." Axel explained. Oh! His petit-ami! That made sense.
"Ohhh...Who is Zexion?" I know, I'm just a bundle of questions.
"He's Demyx's friend. Why?" So the mullet's name was Demyx. Got it.
"Just wondering why he would need to ask to bring a friend." I said. It was just a bit odd, but maybe that's how Americans did it these days.
"Alright. Here we are." He said as he stopped in front of a pair of doors.
"What do we do in this class?" I asked, dreading the answer.
"We play sports and work out." He explained.
"Oh." I frowned. I don't have very good hand-eye coordination so sports were a bad thing for me. Ven was the athletic one. I was the brains.
We went into the gym and as soon as we got there the teacher yelled, "Everyone gather around!" We all gathered around without hesitation. "This year we're going to provide uniforms. So pick your size and get changed." I frowned. We had to change out of our clothes? This was ridiculous! I went to the small bucket of uniforms. I knew I everything else would be too big for me. I looked a little uncertain at the clothes. I didn't know what size I was in American! But at last I figured out a pair of shorts and a shirt that would fit and headed to the changing room.
Axel decided to grab a locker right next to mine, which I didn't mind much until I started to undress. I could feel his eyes on me as I took off my shirt. A blush started to rise to my cheeks as I pulled off my jeans. Well, at least he was changing while watching. When I was done I headed out the door whether he was ready or not.
When I got out I saw the other students all grouped together. I really didn't want to spend more alone time with Axel so I headed for a group of girls. I knew one of them. Her name was Olette. Hayner had introduced me to her yesterday. She was nice, and cute! But not as cute as Naminé. Axel didn't follow me, which alright with me. I didn't care.
"Hey Roxas!" Olette chirped at me. I smiled. She introduced me to her friends and they all started to ask me questions about France, and of course Paris.
A whistle was blown. Everyone looked towards the teacher. I didn't even know his name. "Alright! We're gonna play a quick game of basketball. Boys against girls." The coach yelled at us. Did he really have to yell? We all had ears.
The game started shortly after that and I just jogged half heartedly with all the boys. I didn't really know what was going on, but I didn't want to know. I would just screw it up. And, suddenly, there I was, holding the god forsaken orange ball in my hands. Hm, it felt kind of funny.
"RUN ROXAS! GO!" Axel shouted at me. Well, he didn't have to yell. I had ears.
I started to dribble down the court, people following after me. I didn't like this. Not one bit.
My foot scraped the court, making a squeak noise and causing me to lose my balance. I toppled over, landing right on top of Axel.
"Oh. Sorry!" I said quickly, blushing softly at my blunder. I started to stand up, but at the same time so did Axel. Hands and feet were misplaced, causing us to fall over again, this time with me on the dirty court.
He looked down at me, as if there were no one else in the world. He started to move his face closer to mine and instantly my face flared up in heat. It was getting really hot in here...Yet, somehow, I started to lean towards him. Why you may ask? Probably because of that look on his face. It was so...wonderful. His lips barely touched mine. And I realized something. This is wrong.