Hey! Um sorry for this being late and the train wreck from last chapter, let's see if we can clean this disaster up, ne?

*LINE*

Axel sat in the driver's seat in his car, gripping the steering wheel like a lifeline as he waited for any sort of reply to his previous text. Would Roxas ever even talk to him again? He twitched at the thought, almost as if it was trying to get out of the guilt that trapped his being and turned him into what he was at the moment; a scared boy trying to do everything in his power to get rid of that aching feeling that he has felt before and never wants to again. It was all genuine; Axel was scared, filled to the brim with unwanted emotions that tore at his mind. The look on Roxas' face filled his mind like a picture that refused to find refuge somewhere else, how could he have done that so easily? Why did he have to be the cause of Roxas' newfound pain? What did he do to have someone look like that, to look like they were being tortured in every way possible and were begging to die, but found no salvation or peace as they were just tortured more? Why hadn't he looked at the boy's face as he had picked up the limp body and noticed that the expression of suffering went deeper than not wanting to get into the pool? Why did it have to be his fault for being so fuckin inattentive and insensitive?!

"GOD FUCKING DAMNIT!" Was whatfilled the air in the once silent vehicle. All that was heard were the yells of rage and the bang filled with sorrow that began its existence every time he let the steering wheel be released from his iron grip and hit it over and over. He just kept yelling continuously, looking for some salvation in the words only to find they were empty of anything except the raw emotion that had its hold on him.

And that's when his phone buzzed.

He fumbled around with trembling and unsure hands, trying his best to pull the device out of his pocket and hope—just hope that everything would be okay; that Roxas would say it was fine, he forgave him, and let them continue their journey down the road of friendship. Yeah, hopefully that would happen. Axel felt the peace of reassurance right before feeling his stomach drop, his heart crack a little, and his brain override with worry, anguish, anger, and guilt all at once. The words were written neatly across the bright screen, never had Axel hated his phone so much; he hated the news that it delivered despite how much what he had wanted to read was much much different. He looked at the words once more, hoping, praying that they would magically change; the words would fit themselves to his liking to save him from everything.

From: MY Roxie

Axel, I don't want to talk at all. I'm home. I'm fine. Please, leave me alone for a little while. I don't want to be near anyone at the moment.

Maybe he should just do what he said, maybe he should just the let the blonde cool off and by Monday, he'd be fine. Yeah, he'd just give Roxie some space and it would all just smooth over. He did say he was fine didn't he? Yeah, he did, and he probably is. Axel firmly told himself this over and over, he did this to get rid of the instinct that breathed down his neck and told him that Roxas wasn't okay, that he should be one minute closer to being near him instead of being one minute closer to his own home. He was just being paranoid, right? Yeah, that was all. When he parked he got out of the car and quickly into his bedroom, not saying anything to his parents that tried to question him about how the swim party went.

He just slowly and calmly shut the door and flopped on his bed, feeling some comfort in the warm covers that gave him security from the outside world. He suddenly remembered he had Roxas' iPod in his pocket and pulled it out. He sat up and stared at the thing with curiosity. He caressed it, softly kneading it in his hands as if it were a fragile child. He pulled it in close and held it at eye level. He inspected it carefully; there was a crack in the screen. He laughed, not surprised at the damaged screen for he has witnessed Roxas being clumsy before. A small smile formed on his face when he thought about a few incidents where Roxas had dropped something in the kitchen while getting a snack. He recalled when he had apologized for sending the dish tumbling to the ground with their food on it, and then glared at his hands, reprimanding them silently.

Axel went back to his position under his covers, this time with the iPod in front of his face. He closed his eyes, trying as hard as he could to forget that he should probably be at Roxas' house apologizing so much that the words would be spilling out of his mouth like they came from a swift river. The boy would be fine alone till' tomorrow. He kept that same thought drilled into his mind until about 3 AM that same night.

*LINE*

Roxas couldn't sleep, his mind continually giving him a living hell. He tried to just lie down and close his eyes, convince himself he was exhausted by the day's events and needed lots of sleep. When he closed his eyes he just felt like he was back in the pool water, feeling it take him in with no remorse or sympathy. Every time this happened he tried to just let the situation take him hostage and keep his eyes close, but it brought back the helplessness and the anxiety that came with originally being there. Roxas had tried to eat a snack earlier, but he threw it up about 20 minutes afterwards. He checked his phone for the time, it read, '3:07' neatly in white letters that contradicted the black background on the screen.

He sighed loudly, the sound reverberating through the room that was empty of anything happy. He layer down under the covers, feeling trapped under the heavy weight. He pulled his body out of them and assumed the same position. He groaned and hit the bed, feeling frustrated, without covers he was vulnerable and cold, with them he felt trapped. Why couldn't he just calm down? Surely he needed sleep whether he planned on going to school on Monday or not.

He jumped up lightly when he heard a loud bang that must've been heard no matter where you were in the home. It came from the front door, someone's here, but who could it be at 3 AM? Why would anyone want to be here, at the Strife residence? Despite his curiosity he stayed planted in his spot, not moving an inch. He felt frozen as he waited for the person to leave him and his Mother alone. Yet the sound rang on, the unattractive and heavy thud that came from knocking on the door with a large amount of weight. Why wouldn't the person just get the fucking message and go away? Roxas was beginning to get fed up as the person just kept on knocking consistently, not pausing at all.

His Mother though, was already past the point of annoyance and was settling in the depths of aggravation, "ROXAS STRIFE! GET THE FUCKING DOOR! SOME OF US HAVE SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE TO DO WITH OUR LIVES TOMORROW!"

That thought made him twitch, he hated the idea of wasting his life; the life his brother should be living with him. He shook his head, kept the tears that were building from his face, put on a blank expression, and walked out of the bedroom. His feet almost weightlessly padded on the carpet, he was trying hard to let his mother get sleep, and she needed it apparently. He kept his eyes to the ground until he arrived at the front door. The glass with intricate designs revealed someone with red hair in a large pony tail. Roxas let out a strangled whimper at the sight already knowing whose presence he was about to be graced with, but just continued to open the door. Axel's shoulders were slumped and his eyes were red, wide, and sad.

Roxas slowly felt himself enveloped in strong arms. He could feel the boy's warmth, closing his eyes and embracing it despite the sting he felt from being held so tightly. Cobalt eyes widened as he was then not only being held but then pulled against a chest. This action was done gently though, full of grace and softness. Axel's grip didn't loosen though; he kept the sturdy hold and just hoped that the boy that felt underweight wouldn't push him away. The thought about him being underweight stuck out in the redhead's mind. Was he not eating? Did he have an eating disorder? A thousand thoughts seemed to race through his mind as he ran his hands as sneakily as he could down the sides of his torso and didn't feel very much skin as he did bone. If the boy was eating, he sure as hell wasn't eating enough of it. Axel would make sure to change that though. The thought caused a small smile to be born on his face as he nuzzled the smaller boy's neck. Roxas felt fragile to Axel, though he did give off lots of body heat. He pulled back to look at the boys face and saw that his eyes were closed and he had a look of pure agony on his face.

Axel's smile then turned to a deep frown before he leant down and whispered in Roxie's ear while rubbing circles with his thumb in the other male's back in an attempt to help somehow, "Roxas, listen, we need to talk. I can't take this. Can you just grab some clothes and come to my house so we can work this out? That's all I want to do I promise, I want to work this out; I never want to see an expression like the one I saw on your face ever again. I want to become your friend, know you more, get closer to you , see you, understand you, that's all I want; I promise."

Malachite eyes just narrowed when the body he had in an embrace stiffened and stayed that way, "Roxas talk to me, please? Just tell me you'll say yes. Please please tell me you'll say yes. I can't rest till we're fine. I just can't stand to know that I may have done something terrible to you. I just can't let that go, not until it's resolved."

He let go of the boy to gauge his reaction. He had a reluctant and scared expression, his frown deep and eyebrows tightly knitted together. He must be thinking, worried about the outcome of either choice. It seemed as decades passed before Roxas nodded his eyes still tightly shut as if he was attempting to somehow escape reality. Axel looked down at the boy with the concerned smile as Roxas finally decided opened his eyes.

Axel whispered gently near his ear, "Ok, I'll be waiting downstairs. If you need me just tell me okay? I'll help you with whatever you need."

He gave him another short hug before discharging the other boy to go upstairs.

Roxas hurriedly grabbed his clothes, his hands shaking violently as he stuffed them into his black bag. He didn't grab anything else but his phone before he walked downstairs and onto the porch to see the redhead rubbing his eyes and leaning against the wall. The redness in them just brought out the green more, making it seem like a bright emerald that shined in the midst of a sea of pink and red. He remembered why he had made the choice of leaving once more when he saw the concerned look from Axel as they walked towards the car.

*LINE*

Ok basically I would've included what's going to happen next in this one, but that would just take a whole other chapter, sorry