Rain
Axel resisted at looking at the girl again, and tried to focus on the road before him... On the glistening black stone under his tires, on street signs of pastel green and red- on the other cars with bright lights that just barely managed to shine out through the curtain of rain…
But, it was getting harder.
He knew she was curled up against her window, asleep; her soft snores mingling with the beating of the rain against the roof of his Ford. It amazed him how easily she could knock out- they hadn't even done that much....
He bit down a laugh.
He wanted to lean over, and tuck her hair behind her ear. Some how, a couple of golden locks always managed to break free from her braid and spill into her eyes... Eyes that were now closed, thick lashes resting on her pale cheeks.
But-…. he couldn't. Axel sighed again, and tapped his thumbs against his steering wheel. Driving in the rain, especially the pouring rain, was always tricky. It required the driver's full attention, less one end up in a flaming pile of mangled metal and flesh by the side of the road… Not that Axel wasn't a good driver. He was. It was just- the girl was so very distracting…
Axel sighed again, and felt his fingers press tightly into the plastic of his wheel.
What was he thinking? He really didn't know anymore..
He thought back to when he first met the girl. Was it really only five days ago? Six? It seemed like he had known her so much longer...
He remembered how scared and fragile she had looked. So out of place in the dirty subway. She had been like a beacon, amongst all the gray and dirt and dark, signaling to him that she didn't belong. That- she needed help… And he had acted.
It had been so out of character. For him. He lived alone. Was used to being alone, aside from the stray girl who he would take to bed and then forget in a couple days. After all, he had been a runaway too… Did the girl even remember him telling her that? Then one day, he saw this strange girl, sitting alone and unhappy on a stone bench- and had invited her in. Just like that…
What was happening to him?...
Axel had never even really liked kids. Well, not that she was a kid. That- was what was bothering him so much in the past couple of moments. What was getting under his skin- and making it impossible for his hands to sit still for more than a couple seconds.
She wasn't a kid. And he knew it. He hated it, when his eyes would linger too long on her chest- or hips. Hated how beautiful he thought she was. Hated, how he liked the feel of his hand on hers- the feel of his skin on hers.
It wasn't right. He was at least ten years older than her. He really shouldn't be thinking those thoughts.
But he was- and he couldn't help himself..
Axel muttered a curse under his breath, and swerved to narrowly miss a car that was blasting down the wet road. Water splashed up like a wave, and flowed down the girl's window; but she didn't notice.
What a fool you are, Ax…
At long last, his apartment building came into view- the emerald green of it's walls almost a gray in the rain…. With steady hands, he parked the truck- and pulled the key out of its ignition. The Ford growled, and eventually grew still.
Then- all was silent.
Finally, Axel was able to the girl. She was in fact, very much asleep against the glass- legs tucked up against her chest, and hands hidden deep in her sweater's long sleeves.
He smiled, and quickly banished any tender moments his mind had began conjuring up. He shoved the girls shoulder, and she grumbled before blinking her eyes open.
Her grey eyes found his, and she squinted. "We home?" she mumbled, and smothered a yawn.
Home.
His home. Not hers. But, it kept feeling like it belonged to the both of them now…
Axel nodded, and then forced his mind to start acting like itself again. "Ok- Namine, listen. It's still raining out there, so let's get this right the first time," he began, and she smiled- eyes still glazed with sleep. "You with me here?" he asked, snapping his fingers in front of her face. She nodded limply.
He frowned, and continued. "So this is the plan: you're gonna' crawl over here to my seat, then I'm gonna' open the door, then we're both gonna' haul ass to the apartment building. Got it?" he said, the girl only nodded again.
Axel hated the rain. Hated it. He tried to be in it, for as few seconds as possible. He had a bad feeling, though, the girl didn't share the same disdain.
He reached out his hand to her, and she looked at it- head almost lolling on her shoulder. "Ready?" he breathed. She took his hand, small cold fingers curling around his own, and he dragged her body across the consul. It was like dragging a sack of potatoes. The girl refused to move at all, and ended up in Axel's lap- her head against his chest and eyes closed once more….
A position, Axel told himself he did not like. A position, that didn't feel entirely right…
Without another thought, he wrenched open the truck door- rain hitting him like a cold slap in the face, and slammed the door shut behind him. He hauled the girl into his arms, since she was obviously incapable of standing on her own- and started running.
He didn't even bother taking the time to lock it.
The rain was all around him- soaking his clothes, biting at his skin, pulling at his hair. He detested it. He held the girl tightly to him, and sprinted to the building. Since when had it gotten so far away?! Water drenched his legs as he ran- making him all the more colder, and his soggy hair refused to stay out of his eyes. The parking lot was like an ocean- ankle deep water the color of mist and rain.
Damn rain. Wasn't even a cloud in the damn sky a couple hours ago..
He didn't even recall ripping open the door of the entrance, and diving into it.
Then, there was silence- and blessed dryness. Axel let out a breath, and took off his heavy jacket.
The rain was only a soft whisper as he climbed the stairs to his room. He left a trail of water as he rose, but he didn't care.
At least he was inside, and the rain was out. It still managed to find away of pissing him off though, dripping into his eyes every time he blinked- and weighing him down. His entire body was wet.
Axel sighed, and looked down at the girl in his arms. Unfortunately, he hadn't been much of a shield- and she too was completely soaked. She shivered against him, fingers clenched in his jacket- and eyes stubbornly held shut.
He laughed softly, and walked quickly to his door. After a couple minutes of digging, he pulled out his key- and was in his apartment no less than a minute later.
He let his breath even out, and flicked the girls cold cheek. Her blue eyes snapped open.
She didn't struggle. Or blush- or anything. She simply stared up at him, and he down at her. His face wasn't that far from hers, and the hair that fell into his eyes, brushed her cheeks and forhead- dripping cool water all over her..She didn't seem to mind.
Then, her hand reached up- and traced the tattoo under one of his eyes- her fingertip leaving a trail of ice as it went.
The spell broke, and Axel blinked.
He quickly set her down, and put some distance between them.
"Um- you want to use the bathroom first kid?" he said over his shoulder, and began digging cold wet things from his pockets. Keys, wallet, change, ruined gum, and a spare hair band. The gum stuck to his pants like glue- a blue sticky mess he was almost positive he was never getting out. His grit his teeth, and flung all the misalaneous things in the direction of the coat rack.
He hated the rain.
Then the girl walked past him, bare feet making only a whisper on the carpet, and muttered a soft thanks, before disappearing into his room.
Namine looked at herself in the mirror, bathroom door securely locked behind her, and sighed. She looked horrible. Her hair was frizzy and plastered to her cheeks- and her nose and eyes were red, as if she had been crying.
Had she been crying?..
Namine didn't remember much after she had conked out after dropping Demyx and Xigbar off. One moment she was asleep in Axel's truck- and then she was in his apartment!!
She sighed, and finger- combed her damp hair away from her eyes. Mabye Xigbar had slipped some kind of drug into her food? She wouldn't put him above having drugs. She giggled at the idea, and stripped her wet clothes from her body.
Getting her clothes to come off, was by far, the most difficult act she had to perform all day..er..night. They clung to her with hands of fabric- and she had to use all her strength to peel them away. By the time she had climbed into Axel's small shower, she was practically sweating.
Namine reveled in the feeling of having the heavy weights gone from her body, before turning on the hot water and jumping back to a far conrner of the shower. It took a while for the hot water too warm up- and Namine did not want to get caught under the water before it was steamy warm, when she was already so cold…
Ice water spewed from the metal shower head, and licked at Namine's toes. She shivered, curling her legs up to her chest, and sat huddled against the sleek white tile.
In a couple minutes, the water was hot, and Namine got to her feet. First, she put her hand into it- as if asking it to dance. Warm water sprinkled across her finger tips, kissing each with feathery soft lips, and she smiled.
Oh ya- defiantly the right temperature…
Namine quickly put her whole body under the hot pour of water, and sighed in pleasure. Finally. It had been way too chilly out there in the rain… Her eyes fluttered shut, and her hands slid over her shoulders and stomach; rubbing away the lingering cold….
When she opened her eyes again, she didn't know how long she had been standing there.. The water was still warm though, so it couldn't have been too long.
She quickly washed her hair, rinsed it, and turned off the water. With the hot water gone, the cold rushed back in- licking at her skin icily and making her chest shiver. She stepped out onto the mat by the shower, and wrapped a large blue towel around her body.
It was thick and soft, like fur, and Namine huddled deep into it as she walked to the mirror. It was misty and opaque- her face a pale blur on its surface. Namine settled for the blur, and decided to look at herself again when she had some clothes on.
Clothes.
She looked around the bathroom, and realized- she had forgotten to bring a set of dry clothes to change into.. Panic rose in her throat, and she felt her mouth go dry. Namine groaned, and laid her head against the glass of the mirror. Idiot!!!! She really should beat herself senseless- right then and there. This was by far, one of the worst blonde moments she had ever preformed.
Now what? She bit her lip, and realized she could either A.) ask Axel to go rifling through her back pack and pull her out some clothes, giving him free access to all her possessions- that she didn't really want him looking at or messing with, or B.) ask him if she could borrow some of his clothes, and settle for wearing a shirt and pair of shorts that were way to big for her. Plus, she end up smelling like him in the morning…
Namine ran a hand through her damp hair, and sighed. She really did have a knack for getting herself into these situations…Under a couple painful minutes of consideration; she decided to go with plan B. She really didn't like people to mess with her things- even if it was Axel.
Namine slowly unlocked the bathroom door, heart feeling like lead in her chest, and turned the metal door knob. The door squeaked open, letting in more cold. Axel's room was dark- almost pitch black.
Great….
She couldn't make out anything; only feel the soft carpet under her feet. With one hand clenching her towel to her chest, the other was flung out in front of her- feeling for any hidden obstacles.
After tripping twice, hair probley a horrible blonde mess, her fingers eventually met the dry wood of the door. She smiled in victory, and moved her face until she could almost feel the wood on her lips.
"Axel?" she whispered, not wanting to raise her voice anymore than she had to.
Nothing.
Namine heard the soft sound of the TV, of people laughing and a crowd applauding. She hoped desperately he hadn't fallen asleep. She tried again, this time louder.
"Hello- Axel?!"
She heard a rustling on the couch, and the sound of feet meeting the floor. "Wha?- Namine? What is it?" she heard after a couple minutes, his voice slightly muffled through the door.
Her body sagged with relief, and was instantly tense again- as she remembered what she had to ask him. "Um- Axel? Could- I use some of your clothes?" She laughed shakily. "I kinda' forgot to bring some spare clothes with me…"
Silence.
Namine felt her face growing warmer by the second- to the point where water would probley turn to steam upon impact. Finally, blessedly, he answered. "Ya- sure. Use what you want, kid." Then, the couch creaked again, as a weight settled back down among it's cushions.
Namine sunk to the floor, and held her burning cheeks. Stupid blushing!! That wasn't too bad, was it? Namine laughed at her nervousness, and felt her way over to his wardrobe. Luckily, she had been in there often enough to have a bit of a feel for where things were- and her hands had found an over-sized T-shirt and pair of gym shorts in a couple minutes.
Then for the embarrassing part.
She knelt down, and dug a hesitant hand into his underwear drawer, and pulled out the smallest pair of boxers she could find, which weren't that small... But they would do. She would have to do without a bra for the night..
She flung off the towel quickly, before she lost her nerve- and told Axel to bring her some of her beloved clothes. No!! Come one, stop being such a girl, she told herself, and pulled on the boxers. Her body shivered, and she beat down another blush. Then came the shirt and shorts- and she was set.
The towel was left abandoned on the floor, and she sprinted back to the bathroom. The door slammed behind her.
Hesitantly, she looked to herself in the mirror. The shirt was black- thankfully- and not much could be made out from beneath it. It hung loosely from her small frame, and its only down side was that it made her skin look all the more paler. The boxers were actually kind of comfortable- and the navy blue shorts hung down past her knees, revealing absolutely noting. All in all: not too bad!!
She took in a breath, and then looked to her face. Her hair was a soft bronze color, water not completely dried from her hair, and the pinkness was gone from her nose- but still lingered in her cheeks. She could deal with that. Namine eventually found a brush, and ran it though her hair. Then, she tied it loosely behind her, and leaned forwards.
OK Namine. You will absolutely not act embarrassed, uncomfortable, or shy infront of him. Got it- memorized?! She told herself, grinning at the use of his line.
She nodded once more, steeling herself, and marched out of the bathroom and into the dark room. With more careful steps, she reached the door- and opened it.
The TV was louder, now that there was not a plank of wood in the way. Axel was draped across the couch, and reluctantly tore his eyes away from the screen when he heard her. Somehow, he had changed- probley when Namine had dozed off in the shower- and was now wearing the customary muscle shirt and sweats. His hair was a soft rusty color, and pulled back messily much like her own…
When his green eyes met hers, she stood still; letting his eyes run over her. Perhaps she was searching for his approval?... She didn't know why, she wanted it in the first place. Namine just hoped he wasn't mad that she was using his clothes. Right then, as she used some one else's garments- Namine really did, for the first time, feel like a runaway….
The man smiled, and sat up- emerald eyes gleaming. "Wow, kid. My clothes look better on you than they do on me." Namine laughed, and her dark thoughts fled. She quickly walked away from the murky room behind her, and flopped onto the yellow couch next to Axel; letting herself sink into the cushions with a grin.
She sighed, and Axel relaxed back into his feline position. "You know," he said, flipping through the channels ",-you could have just asked me to bring you your back pack."
Namine almost choked on her breath, and turned to look a him. His eyes were on the TV, but the smile on his lips was for her. She grunted, and felt her eye twitch.
Asked him to bring her her bag!? No- she couldn't have done that. No, much too stupid to think of an idea like that. Stupid hair.
"I could have, yes-," she said, keeping her voice light ",but your clothes are much more comfy." A lie, but-… Namine was beginning to think otherwise. Axel laughed, and then both of them were absorbed in the movie on the TV.
Hellboy. 2. Namine had always liked that movie. Much better than the movie she had seen earlier that day….
Then, Namine lost track of time, again, and simply basked in the warmth of the room and the man next to her…
The TV blinked off- and the current of sound that had been wrapping around them both suddenly stopped.
Namine yawned, and let her eyes droop shut. "Namine," she heard Axel whisper above, and she peered up. Somehow, his arm had worked itself around her, and her head had fallen against his shoulder. It was really comfortable.
"Mm?" she said, and felt slightly irritated when he started getting up. She slid off him, and flopped onto the couch. He laughed, and got to his feet. "Think it's time for me to hit the hay...," he said, and stretched.
Namine nodded, and felt him kneel down next to her. "Good night, Namine," he said softly, voice suddenly much closer to her than she remembered, and felt something soft brush lightly over her fore head. She smiled dazedly, before realizing- the soft thing had been his lips…
Her eyes snapped open, but he was already disappearing into his room. He flicked off the lights- and darkness surrounded her. The door shut behind him, and then- Namine was alone.
Her hand rose up slowly, brushing through her bangs, and touched the skin he had kissed.
He had kissed her.
Nothing big- just a sweet little peck a brother would give a sister.
But, it had felt like so much more than that. Namine's cheeks darkened, before she grumbled and threw and arm over her eyes. Axel was no brother of hers. He was less and more than that… Certainly, if she had a brother, she wouldn't catch herself admiring how handsome his face was, how finely muscled his body was- how strong his hands were. No, Axel was not her brother.
She sighed, and wished she were older. Older, so that she didn't have to be feeling all those stupid feelings only teens seem to feel..
Namine pulled a blanket off the back of the couch, and draped it over her- then pulled a pillow up from the floor, and nestled her head on it. A sigh broke from her lips, and she tried to get more comfortable on the couch. Stupid Axel. Of all the people who could have taken her in- why had it had to be him?!... Why did he have to be so much fun to be around, and so easy to love?...
Namine blinked, and decided to delete that last thought from her mind. She closed her eyes, and ignored the whisper in her mind that said- she was lucky someone had taken her in at all….
Sleep, Namine- she ordered herself. She had done so, so easily in the truck.
Sleep- and forget.
Forget that you like him so much. Forget that he said you could stay there a little longer.
Remember- that you will be leaving soon.
And that, once you leave, you'll never see him again…..
As sleep approached her, and a tear trickled down her face, Namine hoped desperately her nightmares were gone for good….
She really didn't feel like having one that night….
Okay- first of all, thankyou EVERYONE who reveiwed last chapter!!!!! You were all so NICE!!! I'm so glad you guys like this story, and hearing that from you really does warm my heart... X3 (coughs) Wow, that sounded sappy..... Lol!! But, really- I love you guys.
Second of all- wasn' t this a fast update?! I'm proud of myself! The reviews really gave me inspiration. ;3 Hope everyone liked this chapter!!!
-Kirin