Chapter 7: Aerith sure is an enigma, isn't she? ((youtube: watch?v=kBZLUEZJNz8))

memo: "Do you mean WEIRD?" meow. XD tis a quote from the manga. enjoy!

Monday

your pov

You wake up that next morning to a knock on your door. ...Erm...can you call it "your" door? Well, maybe, since you are residing here now...

"Hey, you awake yet?" Roxas's voice says through your door. "Don't you have physical therapy or something today?"

"Ah, yeah, hold on. I'll be ready soon." You glance at the clock on the wall...What? It's already eight-thirty? You still have to eat breakfast and get dressed and ahh! Good thing you took a shower last night!

Digging through your bags of clothes, you manage to find a pair of jeans and a blue, long-sleeved shirt, clean undergarments, and after changing, you bolt out the door to the kitchen. Breakfast is already waiting for you.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Roxas asks sleepily.

"Because we have to be there at nine!" you cry, scarfing down toast and eggs.

"Nine? I thought it was nine-thirty!" he says.

"No!"

With great agility for someone who just woke up, Roxas jumps off of his chair and into his bedroom...or maybe his bathroom? Eh, who knows. The only things you know about this townhouse are your room, your bathroom, and the kitchen and living room. Rock on.

In about three minutes, you're done with breakfast, and Roxas is out of the bathroom at the same time. Yay, eight-forty! You'll actually be on time now. It takes about fifteen minutes to walk from his house to the hospital, so you're golden.

"So, do you not have a car, Roxas?" you ask as politely as you can. It's obvious he has little munny.

"No, I was going to buy one...but..." He sighs, locking the door behind you. "Well, some...expenses came up...and I basically was left with no munny for about a week. But it's alright now. I'm back up to where I was savings-wise. But...ahhh...I dunno what I'm gonna do now."

You can tell he wanted to add "with you here."

"Can't I get a job somewhere?" you suggest.

"You don't need to do that."

"But, Roxas-"

"Kenzie, it's okay. I swear. It's not that bad." He shrugs, smirking a little. "Builds character, right?"

You don't say anything in reply to that. He's still hiding something, and you'd bet your savings it's about Namine. What's so special about her and him anyway? They must've been best friends, or maybe they went through a lot together. And now she's gone? Did she die?

"You're not going to answer me?" he suddenly asks, ripping you away from your thoughts.

"...I just can't imagine living like you do for so long," you reply honestly.

"Hah. Ready to move out already?"

"I have no munny," you remind him, ignoring the fact that you're actually quite wealthy.

"That's true."

"See? I need a job."

"So you can get away?"

"...Well..."

"Hah, it's okay. I'm only teasing you." He sighs, stretching out his arms, a funny grin on his face. You know, he dresses nicely, despite his low income. "I understand wanting to be out on your own. Trust me."

"Why, were you the same way?"

The funny grin goes away quickly. "In a way, I guess."

Could he really be any more VAGUE? You want to ask him more, but not only are you afraid, but the hospital is in view. There's not enough time...you'll have to wait for some real answers to your questions.

"Well, there's Aerith," Roxas says finally, nodding toward the tall brunette nurse. "I'll see you in an hour or so, right?"

When you nod, he nods back and walks away.

*What is going on in that spiky head of yours, Roxas?* you wonder, walking toward Aerith.

An hour later

roxas's pov

When Kenzie finally walks back out to the waiting room, you stand up and stretch a little. Sitting there with no one to talk to is mental torture. You hate it.

"Hello," she says, smiling. She's much more polite than Axel... Actually, she's more polite than any of your female friends.

"Hey," you say, shoving your hands into your jacket's pockets. You're about to leave when you see Aerith walk out.

"Good morning, Roxas," she greets cheerfully. Okay, maybe SHE'S more polite than Kenzie, but still.

"Hello," you sigh. "Hey, do you mind if I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure, but..."

Aerith glances at Kenzie, who is waiting there patiently. She tilts her head slightly as if to say "are we going home now?".

"Hey, Kenzie, do you mind waiting a little bit?" you ask her. She shrugs.

"That's fine," she replies.

"Thanks."

Turning your back to her, you whisper now to Aerith.

"So, what exactly are you doing here?" you ask her.

"What do you mean?" she inquires, raising her eyebrows.

"What are you doing to Kenzie here?"

Her face softens a bit. "Follow me."

You do. She leads you into a white room. It's not unlike any other room in the hospital, equipped with a bed and dresser and such things. But then she takes you back through a door, then through another door. You've never seen this part of the hospital, and frankly, it's scary. You don't ever think anything is scary. Heck, you've even been in the maternity ward here. Nothing scares you.

But this...this looks like a torture zone.

You're completely surrounded by machines and wires. It's hard to walk through here. In fact, you don't really WANT to walk through here.

It gets a little better when Aerith turns the lights on, but it gets louder. Everything starts whirring.

Most of the noise, you discover, is due to a printer, which is printing out some sort of graph or chart. What it's for, you can't tell, but you wonder if it has something to do with Kenzie.

"I know it looks freaky, but really, it's not," Aerith says, attending to the chart.

"What is this place?" you wonder out loud.

"It's the s.p.t. room. Severe physical therapy. It's for people like Mackenzie who have severe issues with sensitivity to human touch, and so on. All she does is sits here, we attach these wires to different parts of her body, and they "touch" her. It's all simulation." Aerith glances over the charts. "She's really improving, but..."

Sighing, she sets the chart down.

"She'll just never be the same, Roxas," she admits. "She was tortured...her mind is having a hard time telling her otherwise." She then smiles a bit. "That's why I thought it was a good idea for her to move in with you."

"Eh?"

"You both need it."

"Me? For what?"

"Don't act dumb." Aerith frowns slightly. "Namine isn't going to come back."

"Don't say that! It's not over until I find her!" you shout.

"Roxas, even if you do find her, I don't think she'll come back. Namine is...was...proud. I don't think that changed in a year."

"You don't know that," you growl under your breath. There's no way you're giving up, not after all this. You're determined to find her, alive...or...dead. Yes, you do have the obligation of taking care of Kenzie, but it's just a friendship, if that.

"Roxas, please, I'm begging you to be realistic."

You don't want to hear about "being realistic." "Being realistic" is why you're in this whole mess now.

"Roxas..."

"Enough," you say quietly, walking out of the room.

Kenzie is still waiting for you as you reenter the waiting room, but she's looking somewhere beyond you.

"Wh-who is that?" she asks you, nodding toward the person.

With a glance over your shoulder, you see a girl about Kenzie's age, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Oh, that's Emi," you say casually. "Her story is actually pretty similar to yours, but, unfortunately, she didn't have quite as easy of an ending." You sigh, dragging Kenzie away. "That's how you could've been. Emi has been estranged from her family and friends, she's pregnant, and she can't stand other people. Not just human touch, but their presence."

"..." Kenzie says nothing, but you know her mind must be racing with possibilities.

"C'mon, let's go home."

Tuesday

your pov

It was nice to actually sleep in some today. I mean, you didn't sleep until forever, like Roxas is doing, but you got to sleep in for a bit more than yesterday.

And since Roxas is still asleep, you decide it's investigation time. You're going to either find something fun to do, or you're going to figure out who Namine is!

The question is, where to start? Roxas's room would be ideal, but he's kind of in there right now. So that's not going to happen.

You don't think there's an attic in this townhouse, but it's worth a look.

Creeping up the stairs, you look straight ahead at an old, wooden door. Could it be...? This is too easy.

Placing your hand on the door handle, you twist your wrist just right, and the door stops. Locked. It was too easy. Oh well.

Walking down the stairs as quietly as possible, you sit on the living room couch. It's old, but you can tell it was once a really nice elither couch. You can still barely smell the leather, mixed with cologne. It's...just a little bit comforting, honestly.

But the point is...now you have nothing to do. You're going to have to FIND something to do yourself. And that will involve some snooping...

The first "suspicious" thing your eyes fall upon is a closed cabinet. Hmmm...wonder what could be in there?

Curiosity may have killed the cat, but you're not as dumb as a fluffy mammalian creature. You're gonna open that cabinet! ...?

?

Seriously...that is not what you expected. All it is ...is puzzles and board games. They're all covered in dust... You have to wonder if Roxas really owned these, or if the people before him left them behind.

They probably belong to Roxas, though. All of the puzzles are either the really really hard 3-D kind, or are over 1000 pieces. You doubt a fourth grader had these.

...You really love puzzles, you know. Ooo, the temptation.

Well, why not? It's completely innocent. If Roxas gets mad, you can just tell him you were looking for something to do. Perfect, right? Right.

Grabbing the top box, you close the cabinet doors and place said box on the coffee table. ...Getting off track here, but this is really a coffee table! You can tell he must drink coffee a LOT, because there are stains all over the table.

Anyway, you brush the dust off of the top of the box. It's a 3-D puzzle of the Hollow Bastion clock tower. That's cool.

Three hours later

roxas's pov

It's one thing to wake up and hear slight noises from your living room, indicating another life form in your presence. It's another thing to walk into said living room and not see said life form until she says, "Good morning, Roxas." Which is what you did.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you," Kenzie says, grinning a little.

"You're fine, it's alright," you assure her.

"So are you having breakfast or lunch?" she asks you suddenly.

"..." Haha, so funny. Just because SHE went to bed at a decent hour...

"Well?"

"Brunch," you reply gruffly, stifling a yawn. "How long have you been up?"

"Umm...since nine-ish," she answers.

It's then that you notice she's actually doing something to your coffee table. You can't help but look.

"Sorry! please don't be mad. I just wanted something to do," she insists, her cheeks flushing a bit.

"I don't care, Kenzie," you say, shrugging. You're just surprised that someone her age still LIKES this sort of stuff. You tell her this.

"Hah, well, I feel better when my mind is at work on something... I've just always been that way."

As she continues attaching the pieces of the base together, you start reconsidering a few things.

"...Maybe...you should get a job," you contemplate out loud. Kenzie's head perks up at this comment.

"Can I?"

"...Tell you what. You eat lunch now, and after we get done eating, we'll go looking."

"Yay!" Her face brightens... It seems familiar, but you know...it's only all in your head. That's all it ever was. "Thank you, Roxas!"

She stands up, like she's going to do something, but she pauses. Any normal person might've just hugged you without a second thought, but she...is different. Maybe Aerith was right. Maybe she never WILL be normal again. That's...not fair at all to her. For such a spirit to go to waste like this...it's cruel.

Slowly, Kenzie sits back down. She seems disappointed in herself.

"I'm sorry," she murmurs, looking away in shame.

"You shouldn't be," you say, but she doesn't reply.

That evening

roxas's pov

"I didn't think job-hunting would be so easy!" Kenzie says, laughing a little.

"Yeah...that's why I started my own business," you admit. That's partially true. You knew it would be hard to find a job during that...situation. You needed something that would be a lax schedule...so who could manage your job better than yourself?

"But don't come by asking for discounts or anything, okay?" she teases. "I don't think fast food restaurants like those sort of things..."

"Nope."

"...So what does The Kokoro even mean?" she asks you.

"Who knows...probably something cheesy."

"Yeah..."

Really, her whole job obtaining process came by almost TOO easily. You walked into the SECOND place, asked for the manager, he was desperate, she interviewed, and bam. She got a job selling raw fish for low prices for 7 hours a day for 7.5 munny an hour for 4 days a week. That's not bad for a starting salary.

"So I work, what, one to eight tomorrow?" Kenzie checks, holding her uniform close to her chest.

"That's correct."

She makes a pleased humming noise, then holds out her uniform shirt in front of her.

"...This is short-sleeves," she declares. You glance at it. She's right. This is one of her challenges.

"Too late now," you point out.

"...I...I know," she admits, frowning. "I'll be okay, as long as I'm busy!" She sighs a little, a small smile on her face. "Besides...I guess I can't hide from it anymore, you know?"

"...I know."

Wednesday

your pov

"I have work in a half hour!" you announce loudly, making sure Roxas can hear you.

"Okay," he says through his bathroom door. "Do you need an escort?"

"No, I'll be okay." You lean closer to the door. "Are you seriously picking up a cell for me?"

"Yeah, you'll get it tonight, I promise."

"Okay, thank you."

Grabbing your work permit and such documents, you head outside into the cool, late fall air.

It's November already...seems like yesterday that you came to the hospital, but that was late July. Soon it will be Christmas time, then your birthday, then New Year's.

*It's a good thing I walked to school,* you realize, crossing a street. *I know this town inside and out.*

Those were the days...but walking to school was what got you abducted in the first place...

...

Suddenly you don't feel so safe anymore. The cool air is blowing on your bare arms. It feels funny. It's scaring you.

But...strangely? You feel like...hugging someone. For warmth. You try to imagine hugging your brother, but you can't. Your friends and your family that were left behind have also exited your memory. Almost all you can remember is pain, and blood, and darkness...

And then...Roxas, and your other new friends, even Cloud, come forward in your mind. You try to imagine hugging one of them.

*Roxas...*

He always looks so sad, even when he smiles. He could probably use a hug. Hugging him would probably feel warm and safe...like you remember your brother.

"Oh, I guess I'm almost there," you realize as you walk down the street. The pink, neon sign for The Kokoro is still lit up, even in broad daylight. "Well, here goes!"

That night

still your pov

It's a wonder that you make it to the door of Roxas's townhouse without passing out. What a long day. Busy and kind of fun, but long. Your feet and legs are killing you!

But you have Saturday off. That's the most important thing that happened today.

You've got it all planned out in your mind. Friday, you and Aerith will convince Roxas to go to Okami Beat on Saturday for a party celebrating your job. Then, while you're out that night, the renovators will come in. Also, during the day on Saturday, you'll be hanging out at Yuffie's place. It's all according to plan. Ooo, it makes you so excited just thinking about it!

Knocking on the door of the townhouse, you exhale slowly. Comfort only comes when Roxas opens the door and drags you inside.

"How are you?" he asks, shutting and locking the door behind you.

"Beat..." you admit, collapsing onto the couch. But then you jump up immediately. "Sorry. I just made your couch smell like fish."

Roxas laughs.

He laughed. A genuine laugh. That was a real smile. Huh.

"It's alright."

"I'm going to go take a shower," you state, trudging to your bathroom. And to think you have to do this all again tomorrow? Tomorrow is from ten to five. That isn't so bad. At least you'll get to sleep in for a fairly decent amount...ugh.

Saturday can't come soon enough.

Thursday

roxas's pov

"How are you?" you ask Kenzie as she, once again, trudges through the door.

"Alright, I guess," she replies.

"Well, hurry up and take a shower. I have something for you."

She smiles a smile that would better be described as a grimace.

"Stop spending munny on me," she insists.

"Oh be quiet. It's not your munny. When you get your paycheck, then you can decide how to spend that. Besides, I know you'll like this."

As she walks away to the bathroom, you sit down and continue on the puzzle. This is still as hard as it was when you got it.

You're being impulsive again, you realize. What you'll do to make someone feel better about themselves...it's become ridiculous. You need to start caring about yourself. Caring too much about someone left you alone and with more sin than the Devil himself.

Something about Kenzie has struck you, though. Something is different about her, and not just her mental condition. Despite her struggles, you can tell she loves life. ...That's more than you could ever say about Namine.

*I'm not giving up on you, Namine. Don't you ever think that about me.*

"Okay, I'm out, now what's my surprise?"

Kenzie walks down the hallway in a short-sleeve purple shirt and ripped jeans.

...? She's actually, willingly, exposing skin...?

"How warm is it outside?" you ask her, abandoning the puzzle.

"Eh, decent. ...We might need jackets. I'll go grab mine."

Without another word, she runs to her room and comes out with a white jacket. You're in a long sleeve shirt anyway, so you don't bother.

"Hello, Roxas? You might need a jacket?"

"I'll be fine."

"Yeah, right, and then you'll complain about how cold it is," she says, flinging open the hall closet. "Trust me, I know how you guys work. I lived with Lea, remember? He'd pull the same thing with me."

She continues to rant on as she searches for a jacket.

"Here."

Tossing you a brown sport jacket, she shuts the closet door with her foot.

"Alright, let's go," you say. Kenzie nods, and together you depart from your house.

"So what are we doing?" she asks, trotting next you as you stride down the street.

"Doing something you said you wanted to do a long time ago," you answer.

"And that was?"

"You'll see."

She huffs a sigh of pure impatience.

"You are like Lea," you tease her.

"Am not. I have SOME patience. I just don't like surprises." You notice she flips open her new phone to check the time. Another sigh, then she flips it shut with a loud "click." "And I'm hungry."

"I know."

You turn around the corner, and Kenzie gasps.

"No way...I can't believe you remembered this from forever ago!" she cries.

"Yeah, I can't either. But I thought of it yesterday." You nod toward the ice cream parlor. "C'mon, let's go."

"Why rush? Nobody'll be there. It is November."

"So? It's always the season for ice cream."

With a stunning grin, Kenzie skips on ahead of you, her bright red hair bouncing in waves against her back.

After eating ice cream

your pov

"Thank you, Roxas," you say, feeling your cheeks redden a bit.

"It was nothing," he replies.

"..." You know, though...it was something.

"What's wrong?" he asks you as you look at the ground.

"...I'm happy," you say quietly, glancing up at Roxas. He tilts his head a little in confusion.

"Why is that bad?"

"It's not, really. I just..."

*I've just got to make myself do this,* you tell yourself.

With more of a tackle than intended, you hug Roxas tightly.

"Thank you," you repeat, inhaling deeply. It wasn't the couch that smelled of real leather. HE does. HE smells like cologne and leather. HE feels warm. He also feels...worn...and loved at the same time. Namine...?

*You were my only hope to begin with,* you want to say as his arms wrap around your waist. *I knew you would make me normal. Thank you.*

"It was no big deal," he murmurs.

*To me, it was.*