Roxas ended up at Riku's apartment. He wasn't sure why he was there, he just knew he didn't want to be alone. After knocking on the door, he realized they probably weren't home- it was Thanksgiving after all. They were likely with family….
He was about to walk away when the door opened to reveal a happy Sora. "Happy T-…Roxas?"
There was lots of noise inside the apartment and Roxas suddenly felt like he was intruding. "S-sorry. I shouldn't have come…"
"Don't be silly!" Sora grabbed his hands before he could escape, "The more the merrier!"
Before he knew what was happening, Roxas was being pulled inside and introduced. He was poked and prodded and pet by an assortment of family members.
"This is my brother Terra, and my mom and dad and that's Riku's sister Aqua and his mom. Have you eaten yet?"
Roxas was being pulled through a crowd of people. Admittedly there weren't that many but it was still overwhelming for the blonde.
"Um…no."
"Good! We're about to start dinner! I'll set you a place!"
"Sora…you don't have to-"
"Roxas." Sora suddenly stopped as they reached the dinning area and turned to Roxas looking serious, "I'm really glad you're here."
Roxas stammered unable to reply to such an unexpected and sincere comment. Sora just grinned and skipped away to the kitchen leaving Roxas to fend for himself. He didn't want to go back into the living room full of people but he didn't want to seem rude especially after Sora had been so gracious.
Sora and Riku's families appeared to be really close. They were a merry bunch chatting and teasing and…just being the way a family is supposed to be. Roxas watched them as he thought about his evening. He wondered if Riku's family knew about his sexual preference. Riku never really acknowledged it much so it was hard to say. He was sure Sora's family knew about him. Everyone knew about Sora.
Tears stung his eyes but he refused to cry. Things had been going fine, other than the awkwardness of seeing his brother again, but….
"Hey Rox what-" Riku stopped as he saw the look on Roxas' face, "You okay?"
Roxas didn't reply and was only vaguely aware of Riku pulling him away.
Roxas was sitting on a bed. He guessed this was Riku's room and Riku had pulled him in here. Roxas didn't remember it happening- he was quite a bit out of it.
"Rox, what happened? What's wrong?" Riku took Roxas' face in his hands and looked into red-rimmed eyes.
"I…" Roxas wasn't sure where to start. He wanted to tell someone but he also didn't want to talk about it. Roxas shook his head, "Your family is having fun out there, you should join them. Don't let me spoil your night."
Riku just continued looking into Roxas' eyes until the blonde knew he wasn't going to give up.
He sighed and decided to start from the beginning "When I was fifteen, I came out to my brother. We were really close and I thought I could confide in him but he totally shut me out. He avoided me after that and after he moved out I didn't see him at all. My parents managed to get us in the same room for the first time in…god, in like three fucking years and… everything just fell apart."
Riku held Roxas to his shoulder while he cried.
"Do you have a girlfriend yet?" Mom asked just as they had sat down to dinner. Roxas hated this question so much he forgot Ven was there and answered.
"Something like that." He was thinking of Sora as he shuffled mashed potatoes around on his plate
Ven eyes turned to him in shock while his mother squealed in delight, "When are we going to meet her? What's she like?"
"So you're not…" Ven's question, though quieter, overpowered his mother's.
Roxas turned to him with a sharp glare. "What's it matter if I am or not?!"
Mom's excited chatter stopped immediately as her two sons looked at each other. Roxas was tired of feeling like he could never be accepted as he is. Though he had made the comment about a girlfriend to his mom, he refused to lie to Ventus just to feel accepted.
"I don't understand. What's going on?" Mom asked more subdued than before. The tension in the air was thick and both boys ignored their mother.
"Well? Do you have a girlfriend?" Ven asked a very different question dancing in his eyes.
Roxas glanced at his parents then back at Ven.
"Oh my god, they don't even have a clue." Ven said mostly to himself.
Roxas had had enough. "I will never have a girlfriend." He said to Ven then he turned and screamed it at his parents, "I. Will. Never. Have. A. Girlfriend!" He was standing now, his hands on the table glaring at each of his family members in turn- daring them to say something.
"Roxas, honey, what is going on?" His mother's voice tried to reach out. "Is something wrong?"
"Roxas, settle down now. Talk to us calmly." Dad offered.
"Is something wrong? Did we do something wrong?" Mom kept asking.
"Oh, for god's sake! He's gay!" Ven's voice rang out above the rest. Roxas screwed his eyes shut so he didn't have to see the reactions on his parent's faces.
Silence.
"R-Roxas?" Mom's voice tentatively spoke up as if walking on eggshells.
"Shut up!" Roxas backed away from the table stumbling, "I don't want to hear it!" Tears were streaming down his face. He wouldn't open his eyes. He covered his ears. He felt someone reach out to him and he took off running.
When his tears had finally stopped, Riku said in that voice Roxas always found so soothing, "I think you should come join us for dinner. If you don't want to, you're welcome to stay in here. If you want, I'll stay with you."
Roxas shook his head which still rested on Riku's shoulder. He didn't want Riku to miss out on Thanksgiving because of him and he didn't want Riku to spend his family time worrying about him. He remembered what Sora said about being glad he was here and answered Riku, "I'll join you guys."
Riku rubbed Roxas' back, "Okay, the bathroom is the next door over if you want to wash up. I'll meet you in the dining room."
Roxas took a moment to collect himself after Riku had gone looking around the room for the first time. It had light grey carpeting like most of the apartment and the walls were done in a dark grey with white stars. It was almost childish especially for someone like Riku but the baby blue of the furniture and blankets brought it all together. It was really nice and the more Roxas looked at it, the more he felt like it matched Riku perfectly. Finally, when he had calmed down, he joined the group for Thanksgiving dinner.
When Roxas joined the dinner table he was greeted with warm smiles and welcomes. The food was great and the company was fun, Roxas found himself smiling in no time at all and had an enjoyable rest of the evening.
