NS: This chapter has a sort of a Titanic spoiler, so be warned. Also it is super long in comparison to the others... oo Buuut that's okay because it makes up for the super long update. I do have an excuse though. I don't have internet and we couldn't get the chapter TO Tom, so I ended up buying a flash drive and mailing it to her. -sigh-
OMG I DON'T OWN KINGDOM HEARTS! ...DUH. :)
100 Days
Series: Kingdom Hearts
Pairings: Axel/Roxas
Rating: R :ninja:
Start Date: 7/21/08
Finish Date:
Inspiration: Midnight plot bunnies
Chapter 6 - Two Charms and a Bracelet
~~Day 6 - Wednesday~~
As Roxas rolled down his driveway that Wednesday morning, he noticed something peculiar; the flag on his mailbox was standing straight up. He pulled up to it and lay it down, then opened the door of it slowly, cautiously. As if he expected to find a ticking time bomb or some other explosive device.
Roxas peered inside. There was no bomb. But it may as well have been-it was a letter from Axel.
It was in a bright red envelope with silver and orange designs all over it, curling together on the front with the word Axel in the fanciest font Roxas had ever seen. Letting the engine stall, Roxas rolled up his window and opened the letter carefully. The paper inside was plain and simple, but it was the words written over it that made Roxas freeze.
Roxy,
I've got a special sort of surprise planned for you this evening. I know you're home by 6, so get dressed as soon as you get there. I'll swing by at about 7 to pick you up and carry you away into the sunset.
...I was just kidding about the sunset thing of course.
But we are going out. So be ready! I'm doing this through a letter, so you can't say no! Got it memorized, Roxy?
See you tonight.
Axel
Roxas smacked his forehead with the papers in his hand, then banged it on the steering wheel.
"Fantastic."
---
"Sora, it is NOT funny!" Roxas moaned, disturbing the makeup girl that was struggling through his movement to apply foundation to his cheeks. In front of him, cleaning the lens of his camera, Sora was snickering uncontrollably.
"I think it's hilarious, actually," Sora corrected him. Finally finished making over the beast, the girl waved Roxas away and he gratefully complied. He sighed.
"I'm just really not sure where this whole Axel thing is going. I mean, I know where he wants it to go. I'm pretty sure he's made it more than obvious just exactly what he's after. But I don't know that I'm going to let him stick around for much longer." Roxas drawled, rubbing his temples.
"Oh, don't be so quick to get rid of him. It's only been, what, six days? Maybe he just really likes you," the brunette assured him.
Roxas scoffed. "I'm so sure. That's why after only six days, he's practically kidnapping me for a date tonight! Honestly, I believe he's transformed into a squid and attached himself to my face... or so he'd like to think."
"You know what would be hilarious? If he was sitting at home right now, talking to some freak friend of his, saying you're doing the exact same thing to him." Sora laughed, clicking his camera into place on the tripod. Roxas unbuttoned and removed his transparent white blouse while another makeup girl spritzed his bare abs, making them glisten. Roxas stepped into the lights, in front of the camera, a stark-white backdrop behind him. He took a deep breath and,
"Cue the fans and - Yes! Good first shot!"
---
"Dammit, Riku! Get the fuck out already!" complained a very irritated redhead as he struggled to straighten the pillows on his couch. This task was more difficult than one might think, as Riku was seated upon said couch.
"Fuck you, Pyro. If you don't let me finish this episode of Parakeet Pals, your face; I'll cut it," Riku assured his flustered roommate, "And it's not really anything either of us want. So shut the hell up."
"Aarg!"
Never before in his life had Axel possessed such a strong desire to shoot flames from his fingertips and destroy Riku's precious TV set - or at least the idiot watching it.
"Riku. I need you to leave."
"Can't you just take the little go-getter somewhere else? There are a hundred nice places to go in this city. Why the hell would you bring him here?"
"Riku... could you maybe stop being such a little prick and get the fuck out?!"
Riku sighed, rolling his head side to side. "Fine. Fuck."
"What's your problem today, anyways?"
Riku sighed again. "Oh, nothing. I've just got a date with this girl tonight and I'm not sure about it. Seifer set us up. I haven't even met the girl before. I probably won't like her. I mean... what if she's not hot?"
"Don't be so shallow. And stupid. What's her name, anyways?"
"I don't know. It's like... Kairu or Kiri or something," Riku shrugged and grabbed his keys. "Well, then. I don't have time to get ready here, so I've got to swing by Seifer's. See you... later?"
"Tomorrow," Axel corrected him, "I'm not sure when he's going home, so it'll be more safe for you to crash at Seifer's. He won't care and you know it. Or better yet, spend some time with your future girlfriend. Stay at her house."
"I don't know... Seifer says he used to live next door to her and there's some flaming fag that lives right down the street."
Axel scoffed. "In case you forgot, you reside with a flaming fag. Dumbass."
Riku shook his head, "You don't understand. You haven't heard the stories. There's a particularly funny one about him angrily checking the mail in nothing but a pair of annoyingly bright boxers while complaining, loudly I might add, about some spilled Cheerios."
Axel rolled his eyes, "Sounds like a riot. Now go." He commanded. Riku raised his hands, heading for the door.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm gone. See ya."
"Bye."
---
"Alright, alright! Yes, Sora. I know! I've got my wallet. What? No, I don't have a condom! What the hell? Dammit, we are not having sex! This is barely even a date! ...oh, fuck you. Okay. OKAY. Dammit, okay, Sora! I have to go! Okay, bye- What? Cologne! Shit! Thanks! Alright, bye. Yeah, yeah. All the details. LATER. GOOD BYE." Click.
Roxas heaved a sigh of relief, plopping the phone on the charger. He leaned far across the bathroom counter into a little blue basket and pulled out a small bottle of ancient cologne covered in dust. Roxas stared dumbly at it for a few seconds before tossing it back in and grabbing a can of Axe instead.
"Oh, Axe Phoenix. You never let me down, do you?" He sprayed himself down and checked his reflection in the mirror. He already knew he smelled good, so he didn't need to check. After all, after that shoot he did with Axe, he was given all the body spray he could ever possibly need, and then some. He carefully smoothed the major spikes in his hair upwards with gobs and gobs of product, then held them in place while heating them still with the hair dryer.
Roxas flattened the collar of his white silk button-up and straightened the legs of his black denim pants. He slid four or five thin black and white bracelets over his right arm and a ring on his middle and index fingers to match. The final touch was a black teardrop pendent hanging far down his chest. Approving of the outfit, Roxas smiled into the mirror and exited the bathroom to find his black dress shoes.
Just as he had located the shoes, the phone rang. Roxas raced to pick it up, simultaneously trying to slip a shoe over his left foot.
"Roxy," the voice on the other end purred, "I'm here, sweetness. Come on out and let me see the Princess."
Roxas was awestruck. Roxy? Sweetness? PRINCESS?! Who the hell did he think he was?! Roxas would definitely have to give him a good verbal whooping.
"Um," gulp, "Yeah, okay. Hold on. I'll be out in two seconds."
"Kay." click. Roxas struggled with his second shoe, cursing himself harshly for not calling Axel out on his many mistakes he was not to ever make again, but he was too distracted by his more important mindset- the one that meant he was finally going on a date. After months of being cooped up inside the house, he was finally going on another date. And with a sexy man, no less. He was excited.
Roxas threw his phone down on the bed and picked up his keys, shoving them into his pocket after going through the front door and locking the door behind him. Axel's shiny red truck sat idling in his driveway, glimmering in the dimming sunlight. Axel honked the horn twice and Roxas rushed over to the passenger's side, ripping open the door and pulling himself inside. Axel turned down his blaring stereo and lowered his sunglasses to eye Roxas through the tops of them.
"Ready, Sunshine?"
Roxas twitched. He was excited about the date and all, but he was really exaggerating his acceptable use of nicknames.
"Very. Where are we going?" Roxas asked, voice full of enthusiasm. Axel shrugged, throwing the gear into reverse.
"Nowhere special. Just this little place I know."
"Oh, is it Italian? Because I really love Italian." Roxas babbled. Axel made a tiny note inside his mind, reminding himself that Roxas liked Italian. Axel couldn't help but smile.
"It really varies. It's Italian tonight, though. How does homemade ravioli sound?"
"Delicious." Roxas approved and settled his hand on the empty space between them. It was blaringly obvious the level of trust he had for the redhead, compared to their first car ride together, in which if given the option to ride in the bed of the truck, Roxas would have more than likely accepted immediately. "Do you mind if I pick something to listen to?"
"No, go ahead. My cds are in the case in the floor." informed the redhead and Roxas reached into the floor to recieve said cd case. He flipped through the pages of hardrock and heavy metal before stopping short.
"Wait, wait, wait. Why do you have this in all... THIS?" Roxas questioned, motioning first to the one cd and then to the rest of the case. Axel chuckled.
"Hey, I can't help it if I like a little Lifehouse. I mean, they're not all that bad, anyways..."
"Uh-huh. Sure. What's your favorite song on here?"
"Seven." Axel answered without hesitation, making Roxas laugh out loud.
"That was fast. I have a feeling you love them," Roxas accused, sliding the cd into the player. He flipped it to number seven and a familiar tune began to play. The lyrics started soon after.
We're both looking for something we've been afraid to find. It's easier to be broken. It's easier to hide.
Roxas liked this song. It was something he could relate to. He set the cds back in the floor and let his hand rest again between the two of them.
Looking at you, holding my breath. For once in my life, I'm scared to death. I'm taking a chance, letting you inside.
Roxas could see Axel subtlely singing along with the words. Roxas let his gaze drift to out the window as he began to sing softly out loud.
I'm feeling alive, all over again. As deep as the sky, under my skin. "Like being in love," she says, "for the first time."
Concentrating hard on the lyrics, a small amount of sadness swept over Roxas. And then, as the next line began, he felt a warm set of fingers wrap around his cool hand on the seat of the truck. He whipped his head around quickly, but Axel kept his eyes focused on the road, acting as if he was doing nothing at all. Roxas eyed their hands, linked together, listened to the song that related to them both so well pumping into both of their ears, and just barely, Roxas smiled. He rotated his hand to match Axel's and gave a light squeeze.
Maybe it was something they both needed.
At almost the exact time the song ended, they pulled into another driveway.
"Um, where are we? I thought we were going to eat...?" Roxas asked, clearly confused. Axel put the truck in park and removed his keys. He removed his sunglasses and hung them in a strategically placed hook above his head.
"We are. Come on."
Skeptical, but accepting, Roxas got out of the truck and followed Axel as he made his way up the walk to an apartment building. The two made their way to the second floor and at apartment 3B, Axel stopped. He stuck his key into the door and it swung open.
"Welcome to Chez Axel," He announced with a grin. Roxas arched an eyebrow.
"We're eating at your house?" Roxas asked, peering inside the apartment. It was modern-looking, but cozy.
"Yes we are. The food is in the oven and should be done in just a little while. After we eat, I get some payback."
"...what... do you mean, exactly?" the blond asked hesitantly, closing the door and taking a seat on Axel's couch. Axel touched his forehead to Roxas', smiling brightly.
"We're going to watch my favorite movie, silly. Well, one of my favorites. I didn't think Pulp Fiction or Rush Hour 2 were really practical date flicks, so I picked my favorite romantic flick." Axel explained, throwing the case at Roxas and striding into the kitchen to check on the food. Roxas picked up the case and blinked.
"Titanic? Are you serious? You? Mister 'I am tough master of your universe?"
"Well," came a voice from the kitchen, "it was either that or The Notebook, but everyone has already seen that one."
"What, and we haven't all seen Titanic?"
"...have you?" Axel asked innocently, appearing suddenly at Roxas's side and plopping down. "Dinner's ready." Roxas had always pretended that he had seen Titanic. Afterall, everyone had, right? But as previously mentioned, he didn't see movies very often. "Close your eyes." Axel commanded.
Only slightly concerned about doing so, Roxas let his eyes slide shut and as he waited he could hear light sounds of clinking glass and metal now and again. He heard Axel mutter 'oops' twice, making him smile as he wondered what hilarious mistake the redhead had possibly made. After a full five minutes of waiting, Axel heaved a sigh of relief.
"Okay. Don't open your eyes yet." Axel whispered softly, suddenly behind Roxas and right beside his face. His hands, always warm apparently, covered Roxas' already closed eyes and he shuddered beneath them. "Stand up slowly." he continued whispering. Roxas did as he was told, rising from his seat. "Move forward," Axel whispered huskily, his lips barely touching the blond's ear. Roxas was more than thankful that Axel was behind him in this moment because the red glow radiating his face would be hard to explain his way out of.
Axel's hands suddenly lifted from Roxas' face. "Okay. Open your eyes."
And when they were opened, there was no stopping the short gasp from Roxas' lips. There was a round table, covered in a red and white lacey tablecloth, draping over the sides. Atop it were two beautifully sculpted wine glasses, a bottle of the wine itself, gold foil wrapper broken and hanging in tattered chunks from the lips of the bottle.
There were two plates, and in the center of each was an average-sized pile of steaming ravioli. Silverware was placed where necessary and in the center of it all were two bright red candles, lit and glowing. Any other lights in the house were off and the sole source of light came from the candles.
"Axel, I-" Roxas began, but Axel layed his finger over Roxas' lips.
"Shh. Sit."
Axel seated Roxas, then himself and poured them each half a glass of wine. He pulled a small black remote from under the table and pointed it at a stereo system in the corner. A soft, sad melody began to play. The music was piano.
"That's me playing," Axel offered after a brief silence while Roxas was totally entrapped by the atmosphere.
"...oh yeah...?" Roxas asked absently, "It's pretty..."
"Well? Are you going to eat the food or just stare at it?"
Roxas broke from his trance with a slight jump and picked up his fork, collecting food atop it and popping it into his mouth. His eyes widened. "Oh my god!" Roxas suddenly exclaimed, reaching for his napkin. Axel panicked.
"What? What?!"
"...it's SO good!" the blond purred. "Waaay better than that Chef Boyardee(sp?) crap! I mean, this stuff is like, super amazing!" After the compliment fest, Roxas dug quickly into several more bites. Axel smiled smugly and shook his head slowly, eating some of his food as well. When the plates were nearly clean and the glasses emptied, Axel poked the remnants on his plate sheepishly.
"So what made you decide to come on an official date with me, hm?" he drawled, pushing a piece of ravioli in a heart motion, leaving a saucey smear of the same shape. Roxas wiped the corners of his mouth.
"Ha! As if I had a choice! You gave me a letter! You didn't even give me time to reject you!"
"...ouch, Roxas. You cut me real deep just now. And uh, Roxy... you seemed quite the eager beaver when I pulled up to get you... I didn't even have to go to the door. Just one little phone call from yours truely and you came trotting right out the door, ready for me to wisk you away." Axel finished his speech with a smile and brought his eyes to meet Roxas', smirking devilishly. The fork in his hand paused, and then dropped.
Roxas looked away quickly, pretending to admire a Batman poster Riku had hung on the wall, his cheeks stained pink. "I don't know what you're talking about. I mean, you practically dragged me here..." Roxas' poor attempt at covering up his eagerness proved futile because in an instant, Axel was beside him, inches from his face, right hand carressing his left cheek. Roxas jumped, startled.
Axel's lips leaned forward slightly, barely grazing Roxas' cheek, and still the small display of affection was enough to have Roxas in tremors. He leaned into the touch, against his own will, mind you, eyes sliding closed. Smiling into his cheek, Axel added a bit more pressure, using his hold on Roxas' face to slyly turn his head, pressing the smallest kisses along, trailing to the corner of his mouth.
And just as Axel drew back slightly, ready to plant his very first Roxas-style kiss on the lips of the beauty himself, Roxas' eyes flew open. He stood straight up out of his chair and stood there, perfectly still, perfectly rigid. Axel, on the other hand, yelped loudly and fell backwards on the floor, holding his nose and squeezing his eyes shut.
"Ow, ow, fuckity, OW!" he exclaimed, grasping his face with both hands. Roxas gasped and fell beside him.
"What happened? Are you okay?!"
"Do I look okay?! No, dammit! You broke my nose!"
"Wha...? What did I do?"
"You only slammed into my nose with your extremely SHARP shoulder blade! Jesus!" Axel stood and trailed into the livingroom, a string of cusses not far behind him. Roxas, now feeling guiltier than he had since he stole the glitter crayons from his first grade class, followed half a step behind Axel, touching his shoulder as they went. Axel dropped onto the couch and Roxas copied this movement, practically sitting on top of Axel... which Axel did not mind one little bit.
"Axel, I feel so bad! What can I do to make you feel better?" Roxas whined, searching for a way to help his injured friend. Axel, putting on the best pouty face of his adulthood thusfar, looked at Roxas with pitiful, watering eyes and dove into his chest. He wrapped his arms around the smaller boy's waist and snuggled as far into his abs as he possibly could, smiling widely. Roxas, embarrassed, shy, and totally unsure of what he should be doing, awkwardly put one hand on Axel's arm and the other on his head, where he began to stroke his hair gently.
Axel let his eyes fall closed as Roxas' slender fingers dug through his mess of red lockes, gently scraping the scalp, twirling around the hair, and then releasing it again. "Do you feel better?" Roxas whispered after a few minutes of silence. Axel rose his face to Roxas' level, not releasing his hold on his waist. "Hm?" Roxas asked, smiling. He bit his lip, as if hesitant, then leaned forward and quickly kissed the very tip of Axel's nose. "There. All better." he murmured.
Then something happened that worried Axel very deeply. He felt his face grow warm and lifted a hand to it to find that it was indeed hotter. Was he- Could it be- Was it possible that- Axel was- Blushing?
No, no, no. Axel did not blush. People did not make him blush. Now, a person may make him hard, but a person would not, could not, make Axel blush. He sat up quickly, clearing his throat and grabbed the movie case, walking over to the DVD player. He popped it in and started it. Just as the view of the Titanic underwater appeared on the screen, Axel took his seat back beside Roxas. They were touching, but leaning in opposite directions, both resting on opposite arms of the couch.
---
"I want you to draw me wearing this... wearing only this."
The movie stated and roxas cooed with romanticism. Axel perceived this as the perfect time to reach over and take Roxas around the shoulders, pulling him gently in his chest. And he may have been right, because instead of protesting profusely like the redhead predicted, he lay his right hand on Axel's chest and remained focused on the movie. Axel smiled triumphantly. If nothing else, he was good at timing.
On the screen, just as Rose was about to drop her robe, there was a flash and a flicker and all the electricity in the house shut up and flicked back on. Roxas sat straight up and glared at the television.
"You. How dare you allow yourself to be shut off at such an impeccable time! Damn you, television. Damn you."
Axel laughed. "Oh, relax. I'll just turn it back on." And so he did and when he reached the menu, Roxas started to feel a little hotter. And by the time he had reached the scene they were on, Roxas was feeling a lot hotter. Ha fanned himself.
"Axel, is it... hot in here?"
"It's just you," Axel purred, raising his eyebrows suggestively. Roxas rolled his eyes.
"Oh, shut up. I'm serious. Is the air on?"
"It better be. Riku gets ALL up in my ass if the damn AC goes one degree over sixty-nine. Personally, I think he's insane, but I'm used to it by now."
"Um, well you better check the thermostat because it's getting hot in here."
Axel couldn't help but snicker, "So take off all your clothes?"
Roxas swatted the redhead's shoulder. "Dammit, just go."
Axel crossed the room and examined the thermostat. It was set to AC and sixty-nine, but the thermometer beside it was raising slowly. "Um. I think... the air conditioner is broken..."
"What?!"
"Relax, relax. Geeze, you're rather testy... I'll just call the office and get it fixed."
---One Phone Call Later---
"Okay, Roxas. Slight problem. It's not just my apartment, or even my building, it's my entire block and they won't be able to get it fixed until tomorrow. But come on, it's not that big of a deal. So it gets a little hot? It'll be fine. We'll just finish the movie and I'll take you home."
Roxas stood, heading for the door, "No, I think I should just leave now." Axel cut him off hastily.
"No, no, no. Just trust me. Finish the movie with me."
"Ugh. Why?"
Axel rolled his eyes and groaned, reaching into his pocket. "I was hoping for a better moment than this, but..." When he withdrew his hand from his pocket, he had a closed fist. "Close your eyes."
"This again?"
"Please, Roxas. Just close your eyes..."
Sighing, Roxas obeyed. He felt Axel take his arm and draw it towards him. He heard a small clinking sound and then something cool touched his wrist. He opened his eyes, staring at the jewelry on his arm. "What's--" he began.
"It's a charm bracelet. I bought it for you. See, look, its got a little beach ball on it--for yesterday, and its got a little boat on it for today--you know, Titanic. And for every date we go on, I'm going to buy you another charm."
"Axel, I can't take this." Roxas murmured, fidgeting with the bracelet, trying to pry it off. Axel covered his hand.
"Yes you can. I'm giving it to you. It's yours to keep."
"Axel, this must have cost a fortune!"
"It doesn't matter how much it costed. It's for you."
"I've only known you a week!"
"What is time when you're in love?"
"Don't be stupid, we don't love each other. I can't take it!"
"Who says I don't love you? And I WANT you to have it! So shut up and be grateful! Geeze."
"No! I don't want-" Roxas was cut off right in the middle of his sentence by a pair of silky, soft lips crushing against his own. Roxas' eyes flew open and his arms straightened by his side. After a full five seconds, Axel pulled back, staring at his dumbfounded possible boyfriend. He took his chin in his hands and stared him straight in the eyes.
"It's yours. I bought it for you. You're keeping it. Wear it for me, kay babe?" Axel smiled and dragged Roxas back to the couch.
---
It was almost the end of the movie. Rose was blowing the dead man's whistle and the small boat was circling back. Roxas was laying on Axel's chest once more, but this time they were both shirtless, hair sticking to their faces and necks. Roxas yawned and peeled his sweaty face off of Axel's sticky skin, yawning loudly.
"Okay, Axel. Movie's over. I need to go home. It's like almost twelve o'clock."
No response.
Roxas glanced over and to his despair, his friend, his date, he ride home was dead asleep on the couch, mouth agape. Roxas' jaw fell open.
"...goddammit."
NS: Hoorah. I wrote this story in three seperate sit-downs, an hour or so at a time. Yaaay. I worked hard on this chapter! R&R?
