Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays were my favorite days of the week here. I would wake up at 8:30, grabbing a travel mug of hot tea, and rush out to a building across campus for my composition class and my English literature class.

The former was set up in a computer lab, and my teacher loved to talk about all sorts of things—from philosophy to morality—and let us choose our own topics to write about. My English literature class was similar in its laidback style, and we mostly spent out time discussing whatever novel we were reading at the time.

I was always in a great mood afterwards; today I was rushing through the rain and I didn't even mind. The only little thing bothering me, of course, was whatever Axel had mentioned on Saturday. I didn't want to confront them both at the same time, and this morning I had sent Sora a quick text reading: Did you and Axel talk about anything I should know about?

The food court near my room was packed with students. The dull roar and bustle of bodies was almost enough to turn me away, but my stomach was growling angrily. As I was getting in line, I received a text from Sora saying: Nope!

He was obliviously lying. Sora seriously.

After an eternity, I got a bagel with plain cream cheese and grabbed a table. At first I had felt slightly awkward, always sitting by myself while everyone else seemed to be in large groups, but I quickly got used to it. I had eaten alone plenty of times in high school too; the only difference is that place was hell all the time. At least I had more than one friend there. I was considering trying to reach my old buddy, Hayner, when my phone beeped. Yep! I am at school, ttyl.

I sighed. Maybe I would just try to ask Axel again.

My mom called as I was walking back to my room, and I pressed ignore. I didn't have the energy to deal with her right now.

The afternoon inched by as I attended class and worked through homework. Finally, around dinner time, Axel showed up.

"Hey," I greeted.

He looked at me, surprised, and dropped his backpack on the floor. "Oh hey. I have a stat quiz this week, just so you know."

"You're still on that easy chapter," I waved him off. "So what were you and Sora talking about?"

"When?" Axel was clearly getting ready to leave again.

"Friday."

"Uhh.." He grabbed his car keys. "I can't remember."

"Yes you can."

"Listen, I'm going out to that steak place and I need to leave now or else they might ditch me for being late."

"Hey," I jumped off the bed. "You totally owe me! You have to tell me."

"I do not. And besides, I never got my ice cream." Axel was already stepping out the door and I stubbornly followed.

"Stop being a dick."

He laughed. "See ya later."

"I'm coming with you."

Axel paused right in the hallway. "We're not talking about that while I'm out with my friends."

My arms crossed over my chest and I stared him down. "Afterwards then. I'm not letting you run off again. The two of you have been avoiding this conversation since Saturday!"

"It's only Monday, chill."

I guess he realized I was serious, so he led the way. His car was tiny, and a weird maroon color; it was parked near our building, which clearly was not allowed, but I didn't ask. He unlocked it, and folded in half to fit inside.

I jumped in shotgun. I fit ok, but Axel's head was brushing the top. He was too freakishly tall.

The smell of cigarettes hung in the air and the backseat was full of junk—CDs, empty bottles, a worn blanket, and…please god don't let that be a condom. Just imagine what I might be sitting on.

"Smoking gives you cancer," I muttered.

The engine revved on, sounding like it was having a horrible coughing fit. "I'm trying to quit."

The stereo began screaming as Axel quickly backed up and began speeding down the roads. I recognized the heavy rock song and, ok, to be honest, I loved it and knew all the words. Music and reading are my top two hobbies, so this wasn't too abnormal. It was a mix CD that switched from rock/metal to some alternative and 90's stuff. I wasn't sure what to expect from Axel's music taste but I had secretly been hoping he loved cheesy pop and twangy country. This idiot shouldn't be allowed to like good music.

We arrived at the steakhouse. The lighting was dim inside and the AC was on full blast, giving me goosebumps. There was a table nearby crowded with people and of course that's where we headed.

"Hey guys," Axel called.

"Axel!" I saw Demyx stand up, and they bumped fists. How stupid.

"This is my roommate, Roxas."

"Hi," I managed to all the eyes on me.

I sat down next to Axel and surveyed everyone. Demyx was across from me, gesturing wildly and rambling about something. Next to him was a blonde girl with a thin face, looking unimpressed. At the head of the table, near the girl, was a…person with long, pink hair. I couldn't tell if it was a guy or a girl, and the black hoodie gave nothing away. On the other side of Demyx, at the opposite end from the (s)he, was a boy who looked younger than the rest of them, who all appeared to be around Axel's age. He had blue-ish hair that covered half of his face and a book sat in front of him. He was far quieter than everyone else, with their loud chatter.

"…and I said no shit," Demyx grinned.

"What an amusing story," the girl drawled, obviously not amused.

"You loved it." He bumped her shoulder and I briefly wondered if they were dating.

"Axel, why'd you bring the shrimp?"

"Yeah, Axel, I thought we came here for steak!" Demyx joked, looking proud of himself.

"He wanted to come," Axel shrugged.

I offered nothing.

"Let me introduce everyone!" Demyx beamed. "Larxene," he pointed at the girl, who sneered. "Marluxia." He pointed at the androgynous individual and the name did nothing to help me. "And Zexion!" The younger one nodded at me. He was my favorite so far.

"You smell like chlorine," Axel complained.

"I just went swimming!"

"Of course you did."

A waitress appeared and took our orders. In a panic, I realized I had left my wallet at home, and when she got to me, I said, "Just water is fine."

"Just water?" Axel asked, incredulous. "Aren't you hungry?"

"I forgot my wallet," I hissed, not wanting everyone to hear. The waitress was staring at me, looking lost as she held her notepad up in the air.

"Oh, I can cover it," he said easily.

"Really? I can pay you—"

"Just order already!"

I ordered chicken instead of steak because it was cheaper.

"Who wouldn't want to fly?" Demyx was demanding. He was the most talkative out of the group; Larxene mostly made mean comments, making me wonder how she had any friends, while Axel made a few replies, Zexion kept quiet, and Marluxia was messing with his/her nails.

"I'd rather have x-ray vision," Axel grinned.

"Pervert," Larxene snapped, making them laugh.

"What about you, Roxas?" Demyx asked. "What superpower would you want?"

"Telepathy," I said automatically. Or the ability to ward off pests.

"No! That would be horrible!"

"What makes you say that?"

"Just imagine," he scrunched his nose up. "Larxene is probably planning a murder, and everyone else is daydreaming about sex."

"You know it!" Axel laughed.

"And what if you had to hear it all the time? It would be so annoying!"

I hear you all the time. I shrugged.

"What about you two?" Demyx asked to Zexion and Marluxia.

"Superhuman intelligence," was Zexion's answer. ("You already have that!" Demyx exclaimed.)

"Shape shifting," was Marluxia's answer.

The night went on in this fashion, and I mostly kept my mouth shut. Towards the end, as everyone but me was paying, Zexion approached me. "They're kind of overbearing."

"Yeah," I said confused. "And loud."

He smiled. "I'm a sophomore here."

"I'm a freshman."

"Whoa, whoa!" Demyx threw himself at Zexion, grabbing his arm. "You trying to pick up my man?" he demanded from me.

I took a step back. "Uh.."

"Relax, Demyx," Axel swept in while Zexion and I still look mortified. "Roxas is taken." He winked at me.

Was I?

"Oh ok, cool," Demyx said, leading Zexion away. "See ya guys later."

"Why'd you tell him that?" I swung on my heel to look at the grinning redhead. "And are they..dating?"

"I think so? And cause you have that girlfriend, right?"

"Oh, Naminé?"

"Is that her name? Whatever, whatever, Demyx can have his mood swings."

We were back in his car before I began to demand information again.

Axel waved me off. "I paid for your food, I am off the hook."

"That's not how it works!"

"You look just like Sora when you pout like that," he teased.

"Just tell me already."

"I don't feel like it."

"I'll slash your tires."

"We just talked about your family, Roxie." He jerked the steering wheel a little too hard, and I was pushed against the door.

"What about them?"

"Nothing much," he grinned. "I have stat homework to do tonight!"

So he was no help at all.

XxXxXxX

A few days later, while getting ready to meet up with Naminé for the second time, I finally remember to asked this: "So is Marluxia a guy or a girl?"

Axel looked up from his computer, already laughing. "He's a guy!"

"Oh ok," I said embarrassed.

"You really didn't know?" He was actually shaking from laughter.

"He has pink hair!"

"I know, such bad taste. He's kinda fruity."

I had to ask. "Are all your friends gay?"

"Nah," he chuckled. "Just a lot of them."

"Are you…" I tried.

"Gay?"

"Yeah."

"Depends on who you ask," he grinned.

Before I had time to contemplate that statement, a silver haired boy was at the door. "Hey," he said flatly when I answered. "Is Axel here?" This guy was well-toned and taller than me with ice colored eyes.

I let him inside. "Riku!" Axel exclaimed. "Why didn't you show up the other day?!"

I left the two alone; in college, there always seemed to be someone around, especially when your roommate was even remotely popular. So is Axel gay or not? He didn't seem like it in the stereotypical sense…but the only girl I've seen him with is Larxene, and there's no way anyone would want to date her…should I be worried about this? What if he develops a crush on me?

No way, I reasoned.

Naminé was up ahead; we didn't have exact plans so the first thing she asked was what I wanted to do.

"Uh...I dunno..." I answered. This was a small college town, so there weren't many options. There was a movie theatre, a mall, the main street where I had taken Sora, countless dorm rooms and parties. Not much else.

We settled on walking around the mall. Naminé was actually a very normal girl if you looked past her obsession with drawing. We talked about random things, including: pets, our childhood, politics, TV shows, and dancing. I even managed to win her a stuffed animal from those evil claw machines, and she carried it around all day. I enjoyed her presence more than that of Axel's friends, except for maybe Zexion.

"Wanna see my room?" she asked when we got back to campus.

Unsure, I agreed. I was hoping she didn't wanna do anything..you know. I wasn't feeling up to that yet.

She had a private style room, which meant two separate bedrooms. Her own room! Exactly what I needed for myself.

The bed was white and plush, and covered with forgotten pencils, erasers, papers, and notebooks. Everything else was neat. She had her dressed pushed near the bed with a small lamp on it. The walls were covered with paintings and drawings. I stared at them for at least a minute, unable to find a single theme. Some were random, some were dark, some had flowers, some had only random colors.

"Wow," I managed.

She blushed. "I know, my room is kinda messy."

"No, I mean…these are amazing."

"Oh, some of them are mine," she said happily but did not offer to sort them for me.

Naminé busied herself with digging through all her papers until she presented one to me. I took it, slightly wary, and gasped at what I saw. It was me. She had drawn it in pencil, but now it was completely colored. The background was filled with mixed blues, as if I was nowhere in particular, and my eyes were looking off to the side. I looked…I mean, I looked handsome, and it was a really beautiful drawing; the look on my face was just distant. Like I wasn't all there, or like I didn't really care for anything. Is this what I really look like? Or maybe it was just how she saw me. Regardless it was stunning.

"Wow," I breathed again.

"Do you like it?" she asked shyly.

"Yeah, you're..amazing, Naminé."

"Oh thanks." She looked around briefly, then sat down. "What do you wanna do now?"

"Uhh it's getting kinda late isn't it?"

She giggled. "It's not too late, you know…"

"I have some reading to do for class."

Her face fell slightly and I wondered what I had done. "Oh alright. Want me to walk you?"

"No, I'm fine. Do you want this back?" I held the picture out to her.

"Nope! As long as I can draw you again, that is." Her eyes sparkled at the thought.

"Sure," I chuckled. "Good night!"

"Good night, Roxas."

Just as I was getting in bed that night, she texted me. Have you had a girlfriend before?

I answered with a no and yelled at Axel to turn his video game down.

He was sitting on the floor in front of the TV, only a few feet away from me. "It's not that late yet," he complained.

"I'm tired."

My phone buzzed. Oh ok I thought so. See you tomorrow in class!

This was concerning. Was my nonexistent dating history that obvious?

"Hey Axel."

"Hm?"

"Can you tell that I've never had a girlfriend before?"

"Ha ha ha ha, hell yeah I can, Roxie."

I told him to shut up and rolled over.

A/N: Winter break! :D Please review, make suggestions, tell me what you like, etc, etc.

~KeedaxEmry