Spring Fever

Author: Deity-of-Words

Fandom: Kingdom of Hearts

Claim: Axel

Springtime.

It was by far Axel's favourtie time of year. Every day was the definition of perfect: the sun was sitting high in the clear blue sky and there wasn't a single cloud in sight to ruin the pristine canvas. The wildflowers were starting to bloom and the cool breeze was filled with their aromatic scent.

It was absolutely beautiful.

With a content sigh, Axel stretched out his limbs and relaxed in his spot in the shade beneath the braches of a tree. He placed his hands behind his head and reclined further; it was a gorgeous day and he was happy to simply sit in that shade and observe his surroundings: content with losing himself in his thoughts. There was only one thing – or rather – one person who could make his day that much better.

Axel closed his eyes and sighed once again. His eyes were closed for barely a minute before he heard someone clearing his throat.

The redhead's brow furrowed and he reluctantly opened his eyes. It took a moment for his eyes to readjust to the bright sunlight but when they did he found himself staring into Roxas's azure eyes. For a minute, he felt lost in the pools of blue; they seemed to be the key to Roxas's very soul.

With that thought Axel chuckled softly to himself. He did have a tendency to be melodramatic.

"What are you doing here, Roxas?"

The blonde shrugged his shoulders. "It's a nice day. I didn't feel like wasting it at home," he said as he flopped down onto the grass beside Axel. "What about you?"

Axel glanced at Roxas through half-closed eyes and a small smile spread across his face. "It's springtime."

His answer confused Roxas greatly. He hadn't mentioned anything about the season. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Another laugh escaped the redhead. "Because it's spring and it's my favourite time of year, that's what."

Roxas's brow furrowed Axel's answer hadn't cleared up his confusion, but he had never known that his friend felt that way about spring. Personally Roxas had always liked autumn, particularly when the leaves started to change. The leaves were just like people: trying to desperately to show their true colours. Sometimes, just like the leaves, they managed to change, but they always went back to pretending to be what society deemed appropriate. After autumn, the leaves always changed back to green.

Just as Axel had done moments earlier, Roxas laughed out loud without warning. His sudden outburst startled Axel who had been dozing lightly. The startled redhead sat up and looked around frantically as though someone was attacking him.

It took a moment longer for Axel to realize that Roxas had woken him; he narrowed his sea-green eyes on Roxas and a slight smirk curved his lips. "What's so funny?"

Roxas waved a hand dismissively. "It's nothing," he said while stifling another laugh. Truthfully, it really was nothing. He found it amusing how he and Axel thought so much alike. Both of them tended to overthink things; perhaps they had been spending too much time together.

Axel eyed Roxas suspiciously for a moment, clearly not believing that it wasn't nothing but knowing his friend well enough to know better than to prove for more information. Instead he simply leant back against the truck of the tree and took a minute to observe the sights around the park. A number of families were having picnics: some even had the clichéd red and white checkered blanket.

Children flew kites and placed chase while their parents watched serenely, but one sight in particular caught his attention.

At the swings a few meters away were twin four-year old girls. There was nothing out of the ordinary about them, but they touched Axel's heart; the girls were each taking turns attempting to push each other on the swing.

Their parents stood behind them, smiling brightly as their daughters interacted. Every now and then they would try to help their daughters, and then they did, the twins would knock their hands away before proclaiming that they were 'not a baby' in perfect unison.

A smile worked its way onto Axel's face as he continued to watch the family. After a moment he slapped the back of his hand against Roxas's arm and pointed towards the happy family. "Check them out."

The blonde followed Axel's finger and observed the twins for a moment. Eventually he turned his gaze to Axel and raised an eyebrow. "What about them?"

Axel rolled his eyes. "Look how happy they are playing on the swings."

"I can see that, Axel, but there are plenty of kids playing around the park. What makes them so special?"

Axel sat up and looked at his friend with a disbelieving expression. "Come on, Roxas, don't you remember what it was like to be a kid and coming to the park to play in the springtime? The sun always shining above you, the wing gently rustling the leaves and the swings!" he exclaimed with childlike excitement.

"They were the best thing back then – hell, they still are!"

Axel fell back against the trunk of the tree and with a huge smile, looked up at the leaves above him. He remembered all the antics he had gotten up to when he was a kid playing on the swings. They had been some of the happiest times of his life; skinned knees and broken bones, and of course all the questions that came with being a kid:

How fast can I go? How high can I go?

What will happen if I twist the chains? What will happen if I jump off?

Axel believed every kid should know the answers to those questions because every kid should have tried to jump off the swings or twist the chains, and all kids had competed to see who could swing faster and higher.

That was what being a kid was all about: being bold enough to try new things even when mum said 'no'.

"Do you really think they're the best?" asked Roxas as he eyed the recently vacated swings. It had been a number of years since he had been on a swing, but Axel's words had brought back some rather nostalgic memories. He remembered how much fun he had as a kid on the swings, and for a moment, he wondered if that was how all kids felt.

"Yes I do. I love swings, Roxas." Axel said matter-of-factly. "When I was a kid, I was the King of the swings. I was able to swing faster and higher than the other kids. I even broke my leg once because I jumped off when I was swinging too fast," her said with a proud laugh. Axel may have been a grown man, but he wasn't the least bit ashamed about how much he loved the swings.

Axel reclined against the tree truck once more and Roxas sat up to look at him. "You jumped off a swing?" he asked after a moment of silence.

A smile spread across Axel's face and he gently nodded. "Yeah."

"And you don't regret breaking your leg?"

Axel peeked at Roxas through half closed eyes and shook his head. "Not really. Yeah, I broke my leg, and my mum wasn't too happy about it, but at the time all I cared about was being the King of the swings. By jumping off I secured my reign as King for a few more years," he said with a lopsided grin.

A soft laugh escaped Roxas. He found it easy to believe that Axel as a kid had only been concerned with being King; that was one of the many perks of being a kid. You didn't have to worry about the daily dramas of adulthood.

"But why did you jump?" Roxas asked, "Aside from securing your reign."

Axel paused. Truthfully, he didn't really know why he had jumped, aside from another kid daring him to do so. Back then he hadn't given it much thought; he had simply jumped, but now? Now he knew the answer.

"Because every kid should jump at least once; it's part of being a kid. Doing what you want to without giving the consequences a second thought." Axel's gaze lingered on the empty swings.

Both of them were silent then; each contemplating the importance of the swings in a child's life. Axel had thought about it many times in the past. He believed that every child needed to play on swings at least once in their lifetime, and he intended to give any kids he had the chance to do so.

However, Roxas had never thought so deeply about swings. Of course he had enjoyed them as a kid, but he had never considered them as an essential part of childhood. Now that he had had a chance to think, he agreed with Axel.

"You know, Axel," Roxas said softly after a few more minutes, "I've never jumped before."

His words had been so hushed that Axel hadn't heard them at first. After a minute, it sunk into his head and Axel sat up suddenly. The redhead could only gape at his friend in shock; Roxas had never jumped off a swing before. Axel had thought that every kid had jumped at least once.

Roxas shifted in his spot nervously, he hadn't exactly been expecting Axel to react like that. Then again, he wasn't exactly sure why he had told Axel he had never jumped before, but as they continued to stare at one another, he saw a ghost of a smirk flicker across Axel's lips before disappearing and he instantly regretted saying anything.

Axel eyed Roxas carefully for a few seconds. So he had never jumped off a swing – Axel intended to change that. He got to his feet and brushed his hands against his worn grey jeans.

"Come on," he said, offering Roxas his hand.

The blonde's eyes narrowed as he scrutinized his friend. It was painfully obvious that he was planning something. "What for? Where are we going?" he asked, unsure of Axel's intentions.

Upon hearing the apprehension in Roxas's voice, a laugh escaped Axel, and without warning he reached down and took hold of Roxas's hands before hoisting him to his feet. He paid no attention when Roxas's protests and instead smiled at him.

"You said you have never jumped before, right? Well today is your lucky day, because I'm going to jump with you!"

"Wait, what?" Roxas was unsure whether he had heard Axel correctly.

Roxas wasn't given another chance to protest before he found himself being dragged toward the empty swings. Axel pulled Roxas in front of him and pushed him into the swing.

"Relax, it'll be fun," he said with a grin.

The redhead took the second vacant swing and scuffed his feet gently against the sand. He swayed gently back and forth as he waited for Roxas begin swinging. After a few minutes Roxas sighed; he knew it was pointless to pretend that Axel wasn't going to get his way.

Roxas cast a sideways glance at his friend. "So why exactly am I jumping?

Axel shrugged his shoulders as he started to swing faster. "Like I said, every kid should do it at least once."

Once again the two of them fell silent as they simply started to swing back and forth. Each of them were content with just swinging and feeling the wing rushing past them; it had been some time since either of them had simply sat down and enjoyed themselves as they were doing now.

It was nice, relaxing even – just the two of them spending some quality time together.

The two of them glanced at one another but otherwise said nothing.

Roxas arched a brow at Axel; the action spoke a thousand words.

A smirk flickered over Axel's lips: challenge accepted.

With that, they both began kicking their legs out to propel themselves faster. Both of them were laughing and smiling as they relived the excitement of childhood competition. They continued to swing higher and faster, but soon enough Axel was able to generate more speed than Roxas and wore a proud smile. "You can't beat me! I'm the King of Swings, remember?"

A sarcastic laugh escaped the blonde as he swung forward: "Twenty bucks says that I can!" He wagered.

"You are on! Whoever jumps the farthest wins?" Axel countered quickly.

"Deal!" Roxas agreed, barely even noticing the butterflies fluttering around his stomach. "Jump on three?"

The redhead nodded in agreement. For a moment the two of them focused on building up more speed and when both were satisfied, they looked at one another quickly and nodded.

"One –" They altered their grips and placed their arms at the front of the chains.

"Two –" They swung backwards a final time and braved themselves for the jump.

"Three –" They propelled themselves forward and without a second thought, they jumped.

The feeling was unreal.

Everything was happening in slow motion. One moment they were swinging, and the next, they were flying through the air.

Axel loved it. The wind rushing past him, tugging at his clothes and whipping his hair around his face: it would never cease to amaze him. Every time he jumped it felt different, but each time he felt like he was flying: like nothing could stop him and he could just fly away.

Roxas felt similar. This was his first jump, and he knew that from this moment on he would be forever addicted. He felt like a candy wrapper sawing majestically in an updraft and it felt like the wind would lift him into the sky and carry him away.

As the two of them hit the ground, Axel just ahead of Roxas, everything sped back up. They skidded across the grass a couple of meters before finally coming to a stop.

Roxas landed on his back and Axel was half splayed over him. They remained like that for a few minutes as they caught their breath. When at last he could breathe again, Axel propped himself up on his elbows and grinned down at Roxas.

The two of them dissolved into laughter once again. Axel rested his head in the crook of the blonde's neck and Roxas's heart skipped a beat.

"Told you, didn't I? It one of the best experiences in the world, "Axel gloated as he raised his head to stare down into Roxas's azure eyes. "By the way, you owe me twenty bucks."

Roxas stared up at Axel with a mixture of emotions. Surprise that Axel had been right, annoyance that he was twenty dollars out of pocket, embarrassment about Axel's current position, and above all, nervous because truthfully he didn't know how to handle Axel's flirtatious demeanour. After a moment he smiled up at Axel. "Yeah, you were right."

It was then that Axel suddenly closed the distance between them and sealed Roxas's lips in an unexpected kiss. Once again he his heart skipped a beat. His eyes snapped open – he wasn't even aware he had closed them – and he stared into Axel's half-hooded eyes.

Somewhat hesitantly, his hands worked their way up Axel's back before balling into fists around the material of Axel's shirt.

After so long, so much teasing and anticipation, they were finally sharing their first kiss.

It was gentle. Soft, but at the same time it was demanding: passionate.

And it was the first of many.

After a few more seconds, Axel finally broke the kiss and allowed both of them to catch their breaths once again. The redhead grinned cheekily down at his flustered friend.

The blonde could only sigh. "Happy springtime, Axel"

Axel stole another quick kiss. "Happy springtime, Roxas."