Time to Forget

I found Hayner and the rest of the gang outside Scrooge McDuck's place buying ice cream.

I saw Hayner's hand brush against Olette's as they waited in line together.

Pence's round face lit up when he saw me. 'Hey, tournament winner!'

'Hey losers!' I replied.

Olette high-fived me.

Hayner greeted me with a fistbump. 'Hey, can I talk a second? Olette, could you get the ices?'

'Sure thing. I'll get your favourite, Roxas, chocolate mint,' she said with a wink.

'Hey, I like sea salt!'

She giggled. 'I'm teasing.'

We exchanged grins. 'Very funny,' I said.

Hayner led me to an empty bench beside the café.

'I was worried you weren't coming back. Where were you?' he asked.

'I was with my new boyfriend,' I said with a smirk.

'I'll believe it when I see it,' he said.

'All right. His name's Axel. I'll show you guys later.'

'Ok, cool.' Hayner's brow furrowed. 'No hard feelings then?'

'Nothing an ice cream won't solve,' I said.

'Good,' said Hayner. He seemed to relax a little. 'Thanks for being cool about this. I know it ain't easy.'

I messed his hair up for him. 'We're best friends, right?'

He sorted his hair out before pulling me close. 'Best friends.' He hugged me briefly, before getting up from the bench. 'Seifer was here earlier by the way. He was serious about our gangs working together.'

'What did you say to him?' I asked. 'Shove off?'

Hayner laughed, 'I thought to myself, what would Roxas want?'

'That right?'

'Yeah. Roxas, o champion of justice and virtue. I told him we'd be happy to work together.'

'That's cool, man,' I replied.

'I thought so.'

We went back over to the others.

'Thanks,' I said to Olette as she passed me a sea salt ice cream.

Hayner pointed his ice cream at me. 'This one tells me he's got a new man already.'

I sucked on the lolly some. 'His name's Axel. Tell you what I'll go get him. I'd love for you guys to meet.'

'All right!' said Olette.

'Meet you at the secret hideout?' said Pence.

'Sure!'

'Catch you in a bit,' said Hayner.

It took me ages to find Axel. I eventually saw him strolling out of the mansion gates with his hands in his pockets.

I beckoned him over. 'What were you doing in there?'

'I was catching up with Chip and Dale,' he replied. We walked back through the forest. 'They made good on our deal and they've got us a ship ready.'

'A ship? What for?'

'For our escape.' Axel squeezed my hand.

'Escape? I don't want to escape,' I said.

'You might have to, buddy.'

'All right,' I said. 'Well, whatever happens I want you to meet my friends. They're at the hideout.'

'Sweet. Better make sure they memorize the great Axel!'

As we made our way back through town, the air felt thick and heavy. It had that kind of feeling you get before a storm, when the pressure is building. There were thick, dark clouds forming in the sky, but it seemed to me like there was something worse coming than an electrical storm. As we reached the entrance to the hideout I felt it break open.

RESTORATION AT 100% COMPLETE

We both stopped short outside the hideout. Axel looked around like he was expecting something to jump out at us and he gripped my fingers tightly.

A voice rang out. It boomed all around us: ROXAS, COME TO THE MANSION.

Axel looked up to the sky. 'That's DiZ. I got these icky orders to bring you there myself.'

I tore away from his hand. 'Come on, man. At least meet my friends.'

I pushed through the cloth opening. Hayner, Olette and Pence were sat around a stereo, chatting excitedly about the struggles.

'Hey guys!' I said.

They didn't answer me. They didn't even look up.

'Hey!' I said. I walked right up to them. It was like I wasn't there.

I went to push Hayner playfully, but I ended up falling right through him. It was like I was a ghost. 'Guys? Guys? Why can't you hear me?'

Axel was watching me from the doorway, his eyes cast down. 'We gotta get to the mansion, bud.'

'But my friends.'

'They can't hear you, Roxas. They're just bits of data now. That's all they ever were.'

'No!' I lunged at him. 'You're telling me all this was a lie?'

He took hold of my arm in a tight grip. I wrestled away, as my friends continued chatting without me. 'You telling me all those times I thought I belonged somewhere...that it was all a lie?'

Axel held my gaze. 'I don't know what to say. I thought Naminé's words would help you.'

'That I was never supposed to exist?' I shouted. 'Sure, that helped me a lot.'

I pushed past him and out to the streets.

'Where do you think you're going?' he asked.

'Home.'

'Nuh-uh.' Axel clicked his fingers. A scorching wall of fire appeared in front of me. 'You're coming to the mansion.'

I turned to look at him.

He got right up close. I could feel his breath on my face as he spoke in a low voice. 'Look, I gotta pretend I brought you in, but at the last minute we're gonna make a run for it, okay?'

I didn't know what to say.

He led me with a firm hand on my shoulder. 'I know you're feeling upset about all that never was, but at least you got all the happy times in here.' He patted me on the head. 'You got it memorized, right?'

'I guess,' I said quietly.

'Come on. Let's go see DiZ.'