Chapter IV – One kind

So I got a bucket for the blonde non-alcohol tolerance guy. Cleaned up the mess and found him a blanket and a pillow so he could rest on my couch, but as I returned to him with a glass of water he was sobbing into the pillow I'd borrowed him.

"Roxas are you alright?" I sat down on the living room table, holding the glass in my hand. "I brought you a glass of water, it's good for you," I said and reached out for him to take it. He muffled some nonsense into the pillow before sitting up looking at me, red-eyed and extremely beat up.

"Axel…" He muffled, tears rolling down his cheeks. He was so drunk, poor guy.

"Drink" I said as I made him take the glass.

"B-but…" He whined again, I only glared at him once this time, and he took a sip from the glass. I sighed as he sat there, taking small sips. His cheeks were pink, eyes glossy and red and his nose had a little more color than usual. I smiled slightly. Time had passed since I first met Roxas, but I still couldn't find out if he was a demon or an angel. One moment he's beating up his cousin, the next he's crying on my couch. The only thing I knew for sure, without the outcome of course, was that I really liked him.

I sat there for a little while, until Roxas had finished the glass. I got up to refill the glass and maybe get a pack of smoke in my room, but Roxas grabbed my arm.

"Please sit with me…" He said with a weak voice, I nodded and sat down on the arm of the black couch.

"Lay down then, you need to rest for a while," I said and patted the pillow for him to lay down on it. He did listen to me and pulled the blanket up to his chin, closing his eyes, not to sleep but I think he was thinking of something. I studied his face for a little while before relocating my stare at the quite messy table, pizza box with pizza in it, beer bottles, coke, ashtrays, burn marks and dressing.

I thought Roxas had fallen asleep and I was about to get up when Roxas asked me something.

"How was it to grow up without parents?" The question made me freeze up for a second before I could think of anything.

"Well, it wasn't exactly easy… I lived at the orphanage 'till I was 12, then my best friend's mother agreed to take me in for a couple of years. I was Saïx's "brother" 'till I turned 17, then he and his mother moved into the city that never was, while I stayed behind with the band. Being an orphan from the age of 8 and living in an orphan was depressing and not entirely good for me. So I was quite lucky they took me in by the start of my teenage years," I said half smiling, thinking about my few years with a family.

"Do you miss your parents?" The blonde asked, his voice is even weaker than before.

"Not really, I don't remember their faces, I don't even have a single memory of them with me." I said and let out a slight laugh. Roxas had narrowed his eyebrows, making his face look quite worried.

"Alexandra and Frank, that was their names, it's kinda silly that their life ended by a drivers' stupidity," I raised my eyebrows, looking up at the television which was muted and the game's trailer was playing over and over again. Roxas was all quiet like he'd asked me something awful, but parents weren't a sore subject for me, so I continued.

"How are your parents?" I asked, looking down at the blonde who had turned away from me. He didn't answer me right away, it took a while before he let out a sigh and decided to answer.

"They were completely average parents, but still, the best parents a boy could ever have," He said, his back still turned away from me. Were, as in was? Not the present, but in the past. I was a little confused about how Roxas had put the words together, but as I was about to ask the boy what he meant, he turned around as quickly as a projectile bending over the edge of the couch and barfed into the bucked it'd gotten him.

I got up and brought Roxas another glass of water, but as I returned he'd pulled the blankets over his head. I was sure he was crying. I didn't say anything I just placed the glass at the table and walked out to light a cigarette. I closed the door behind me, leaning against it as I pulled up the pack of smokes, I opened the pack and pulled one out with my lips and lighted it up taking a puff. I sighed at myself. Roxas' parents had died. He was an orphan. He was like me. My kind. I felt horrible for kinda slapping him in the face with it. Happy about being an orphan. I rubbed my eyes in stress and annoyance, while mentally hitting myself.

My self-punishment was interrupted by my phone violently vibrating in my pocket, I'd been sure to pick it with me when I went outside, an old habit of mine. I looked at the caller ID, Sora. Ofcourse, it was extremely late on a week day and Roxas was still over.

"Good evening Sora," I said to the one on the other side of the line.

"Axel, is Roxas with you? He's not home yet… my mom is kinda worried.." Sora sounded a little scared, had his mom been yelling at him for not taking care of his cousin?

"He's here, he's asleep on my couch," I lied.

"Should I come pick him up?" Sora was walking down the stairs in their home, I could hear it creak like it always does when someone steps on it.

"No, it's okay, he's had quite a long day, let him sleep," I said, shifting my pose.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's no problem," I took the last puff from my cigarette before throwing it into an old can filled with water.

"I'll tell my mom then," Sora said with a relief.

I didn't pay attention after that, I was lost in my own thoughts, Sora was talking to his mom, I could hear their voices but I couldn't capture what they were saying. My mind was on Roxas, the blonde, blue eyed boy crying in my living room. I saw him, his shoulders shaking as tears rolled down his cheeks, I just wanted to gently touch his cheek to brush the tears away, wrap my arms around him to hug him, make him feel safe and not alone.

"Axel?" A voice suddenly broke through into my flow of though.

"Sora, ah sorry I spaced out," I sighed and laughed slightly. I felt my cheeks burning from what I'd just thought.

"You're 100% sure about having him there for the night?" He asked.

"110%" I replied. My cheeks almost felt swollen.

"Okay then, my mother says thanks," I could hear that Sora was smiling, his voice was much lighter and he was such an obvious person.

"Well I should probably go to sleep, I got work tomorrow," I said as I stretched my body and yawned, it was quite late and I had to be up at 9.

"Oh, sorry for keeping you up, I should probably go too, so..good night, bye" He rushed his last words, and I wasn't even able to say good bye before he'd hung up on me.

I went inside, locking the door behind me. I stopped by the couch, looking at the resting body in it. Roxas had fallen asleep. I just stood there for a minute, studying him, his face, his skin looked so soft and his eyelashes actually looked quite long, it was kinda cute, his pink lips, slightly parted, sucking in and breathing out air, they also looked quite soft. What was I thinking, what exactly was I thinking? What the hell? I turned off the lights in a hurry, leaving a little lamp on in the hallway. I went into my room, closing the door behind me, resting against the wood, sighing, placing a hand over my face. I slowly let my feet lose their strength. I sat there, leaning against the door for a long time, my face burning, my heart racing, my brain not functioning as it should. What's wrong with me? Was I…No it couldn't be…?

I was in love with you.

To be continued.