I was walking into my room one afternoon when I noticed something strange.
Well, maybe strange isn't the right word. It was surprise that quickly turned to confusion and then to anger. I was just planning on surfing the web or something, but my whole day was destined to be thrown off.
Because, right there in the middle of my bed, was Riku, sitting criss-cross and flipping through a magazine. I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw him. He calmly looked up at me, appearing mildly annoyed. I was used to that reaction, considering that was his expression the few times I had been with him. But..what was he doing in my room? I also barely registered the sound of a yelp and a quick movement.
Riku and I stared at each other for a few seconds. "Hi," he finally said flatly.
"What are you doing here?"
"Reading," he said, as if obvious.
"In my room."
"Yes."
"Sora?"
"I'm not here." Sora's voice drifted up from under my bed.
My heart began to pound after the situation was finally processed. "Sora—out," I demanded, balling my fists so hard the feeling in my fingers started to fade.
He reluctantly complied, scooting out from under the bed, pouting. "Hi Roxas."
"What do you think you're doing?!" I burst. "Why the..heck is Riku in here?"
"Don't cuss," he said quietly.
"I didn't!" I threw my hands in the air. He knew very well that I was restraining myself because he, of course, finds bad language offensive.
Sora made a little whine noise and that's all it took for Riku to jump up. He glared at me, putting his arm around my brother. "Calm down," he spat.
"Calm down?" I shook my head. "Not when you're in here." I jabbed my finger in Riku's direction.
"What's wrong with that?" Sora sniffed.
"You know what's wrong."
"Hmm."
"Get him out right now."
"I don't wanna."
"Sora," I warned.
"I just…" His eyes filled with tears.
"Damn it," I muttered.
Riku took to comforting him, and I sat down heavily after making sure no one was in the hallway. It took me a few moments to relax; I took a few deep breaths with the sounds of sniffing behind me. Then I rubbed my eyes harshly, sighing. Who knew Sora could do something this stupid? How was I going to fix this?
First things first. "You ok Sora?" I mumbled, staring in the opposite direction of the couple.
"Yeah," he answered. Normally, I would be the one hugging him. I would be saying sorry and trying to tickle him or something. It felt so strange with Riku there, as if I had been misplaced and forgotten.
Don't be silly. Riku is his..boyfriend, so this is normal…
It still stung, just a bit, but I brushed it aside and checked the time. 4:03 p.m. Huh. "What day is it?" I asked.
"Thursday," Riku said.
Thursday…there was a 50/50 chance that dad would be getting home late. Did he have a conference or meeting today? I never paid attention to those things..it didn't matter to me usually…well, it's best to prepare for the worst. So we had under two hours. Plenty of time to figure this out.
"Does mom know he's here?"
"No," Sora said.
I turned to face them. "So, again, why is he here?"
"I wanted to see him before Christmas and I wanted him to see the house and everyone's afraid of you so I figured no one would come in here," he said in a giant rush.
"...afraid of me?"
Sora shot a startled look at Riku, who appeared to be hiding a smirk. "I mean...uh...I wanted..."
"This was stupid."
"Sorry." He hung his head.
"What if someone sees him?"
"It isn't the time for that," Riku cut in sharply.
"Why did you agree to this?" The pitch of my voice rose, exasperated, and I gave him a dirty look.
Riku stared right back coldly. "Sora wanted me to come."
My anger was trying to return. "Well, just sneak back out then."
"I'm not done hanging out!" Sora cut in.
"I swear if—"
"Roxas?"
We all froze. That voice was definitely my mom. She was at my door, knocking, and now Sora was pale. Riku looked at me, as if I was going to provide a solution.
I stood up. "Yeah?"
"Can I—"
The door started to open, and I screeched, "No, close the door!"
She seemed to pause, and then the door slowly closed. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." I pointed at Sora and Riku who were gawking at me. Then I pointed at my closet with rough, wide movements, mouthing "go!" Sora tilted his head, but thankfully Riku grabbed him and they scurried into hiding.
I finally let my confused mom in. "Should I be worried?"
"Uh..no…just, you know, guy stuff."
Her eyebrows flew straight up and blood rushed to my face. Good god, Roxas, what is she going to think now?
"Alright, sweetie, is your brother in here?"
"No," I said too quickly.
"I thought I heard someone." Her eyes scanned the room.
"That was my laptop."
The corner of her mouth twitched, and I couldn't tell if she was amused or disturbed. Of course, I felt like crawling into a hole to never surface again.
"Well," she said slowly after a few agonizing moments, "I was wondering if you wanted to make some sugar cookies with me. It is almost Christmas," she smiled, looking normal again.
"Maybe tonight?"
"Are you busy?" she frowned.
"Kinda." She waited, and I added, "I was finishing a scholarship application for school."
"Oh alright," she said, letting her disbelief bleed through her words. "Just let me know, then."
Thankfully she left, and the couple burst from my closet. They were laughing and I resisted the urge to tackle Sora.
"Guy stuff…" Riku coughed to hide a laugh.
"Shut up," I said darkly.
"So what's the plan?"
"You have to leave."
"Want me to sneak him out back?" Sora offered, resigned to the fact that Riku was not going to stay longer.
"Sure," I shrugged. Then something dawned on me. "Riku, did you drive or…"
"I picked him up!" Sora said happily.
"So he'll have to drive me back," Riku nodded.
"I guess I could tell mom you went to a friends' house," I thought out loud.
"Great!" Sora threw an arm around me, jostling me a bit.
"Just hurry up," I shrugged him off. Like an idiot, he bounded out into the hallway, expecting Riku to follow.
Riku made a movement, but paused, saying, "Sorry, Roxas. I know he's a lot to handle."
Then, smooth as ever, he went out into the hallway; I rushed behind them, making them stop at the top of the stairs. I found my mom sitting at the kitchen counter, tapping her pencil on a crossword. She looked up, causing a piece of hair to fall into her eyes, and smiled when she saw me. My mom had a very similar appearance to me and Sora: bright blue eyes, a rounded face, and a slender body.
"You want to make cookies now?" I asked.
She nodded, already getting up. I sent Sora a text to hurry up and go, and began to gather the ingredients. I absentmindedly put everything in a bowl, grabbing the electric mixer; I knew this recipe by heart. I was glad that the layout of our house let Sora and his unwelcomed guest go unnoticed on their way out. My mom helped me a little, but mostly let me get to work.
I mixed the batter, watching the liquid become less goopy. My mind wandered, thinking about Christmas shopping I still had to do, and whether I should get Axel something. He did, after all, get me a gift. For both my birthday and Christmas now that I think about it.
My arm continued to make powerful strokes up and down as my mom set up a place to roll out the dough. I did enjoy cooking and baking, although it was nearly impossible to do at school with the microwave alone.
"I miss this," my mom said a little sadly.
I glanced at her, feeling a quick pain in my chest. Nostalgia hit me as the scene came together in my mind: my mom in her old, white apron, spreading flour on the counter, the buzz of the mixer, the faint scent of vanilla and sugar. We used to do this often. Usually we made sugar cookies once a year, packaging at least half of them in Christmas baggies with red, glittery ribbon while Sora snuck a few. He always thought we didn't realize where they were disappearing to. I'd turn around, and at least three would be gone each time. It's not like we didn't save any for the family, my brother just has a massive sweet tooth. My mom would always chide him, saying he could only eat that many if he helped, and he'd just shoot her a goofy grin and say it's only this yummy when we make it.
I guess things just got weird in my family and this became a rare occurrence.
I nodded, and soon we were using various cookie cutters. Stars, trees, bells, snowmen, snowflakes. We had a ton. The feeling of pressing the cutters through the fresh dough was satisfying, and my mom was going on about something. I listened idly.
The cookie sheets were placed in the oven. The room felt cozy and warm. My mom went back to her crossword because we ran out of things to talk about. We already exhausted the usual subjects of school, current events, her clubs and friends. I went out into the living room, which was adjacent. We had a huge Christmas tree crouched in the corner, covered with years' worth of ornaments and lights. It wasn't fake, which might've been expected; we don't have any pets to worry about.
I flopped onto the couch, flipping through channels. I left it on some Santa movie.
I sank deeper into the cushions, pulling my phone out and holding it in front of my face. I had a text from Axel, asking when we could hang out next.
Well…Christmas was in two days, which didn't leave a lot of time for shopping. Perhaps if I ran somewhere tomorrow morning or tonight, I could pick something real quick, and Axel could come by to get it? That way he'd get it before the holiday…but how would my family feel about having him over on Christmas eve?
"Hey mom?"
"Yeah sweetie?"
"Can Axel come over tomorrow?"
She appeared in the doorway, looking over at me. "Well, I'm not sure."
"Please mom. I have to give him his present."
"Oh alright," she said uncertainly before leaving. She probably wanted to ask dad; I sighed, sending Axel a reply.
Soon the oven was going off with fast beeping, and I hopped over to the kitchen. The cookies were set out to cool, and I got the decorating stuff out. "Are we sending some to your friends or whatever?" I asked.
My mom shook her head. "Your dad already sent some goodie bags out."
Of course. We were spreading the icing on the long rows of cookies when Sora bounced in. "Cookies!" he exclaimed, grabbing a star I had just iced.
"Don't you want some sprinkles?" mom asked. He had already eaten half of it.
"Yeah!" he still said, excitedly. Sora took a bottle of red sprinkles and dumped a generous amount before shoving the rest of the cookie into his mouth.
"You're disgusting," I sneered.
"Am not." He stuck his tongue out at me.
He continued to lean against the counter as we finished up. I licked a stray bit of frosting off of my thumb and started to walk away. "Aren't you going to eat any?" Sora asked behind me.
"Nah."
"Oh right, you prefer ice cream." When I looked back, he was shrugging and shoving another cookie in his mouth while my mom laughed.
I decided to run out tonight to pick up my last minute gifts. My mom reluctantly agreed that I could go after dinner. It was a relief to step out into the brisk cold, making my way to the car. I hadn't driven in a while, and when I got in, I immediately felt at home. The seat was where I like it (since Sora was the last to drive it) and I started it quickly. My seatbelt clicked into place, I glanced at my mirrors, turned the heat up, and switched the radio to my favorite station. The song "Carry on Wayward Son" came on and I turned it up a bit before backing out of the driveway.
The music filled the air and I sped down the road. It was so peaceful. The roads were dark and empty, except for my headlights. I had to turn a few different ways to get out of our neighborhood, then entered a busier area. Lights flashed by as the guitar notes danced. I really should drive more. It gives me time alone to my thoughts and I can just enjoy the feel of the engine rumbling underneath.
I parked at the mall, and checked my phone before getting out. It looked like our plans were set tomorrow; Axel would come over, and we would…hang out or something, as long as he got his stupid present!
And I did kinda miss him.
I mean, kinda. "I'm used to living with him," I muttered. Obviously I got used to him! Just remembering how he used to annoy me made me chuckle; learning to deal with him was the easier route, I reasoned.
I anticipated a short trip, but of course the mall was packed with people. I dodged and weaved my way between people, trying to figure out what I was going to get. Let's see…I already got my mom some new bath salts, fancy NERF guns for Hayner and Pence (trust me, they'll love it), and a pack of skateboard stickers for Olette. I didn't need to worry about finding something for my dad, because my mom always gets something and pretends it's from me.
That leaves...just Axel and Sora. Wait, will Naminé want something? I haven't really talked to her for a while, but it'd probably be a nice thing to do…
I slipped into a toy store, figuring I could find something silly for Sora and something cute for Naminé. There was a whole display for stuffed animals and for some reason I was drawn to a medium-sized walrus. I picked it up, the fur soft against me. Would she even like this? I pondered for a bit, but none of the other animals were as appealing…but a walrus? Hmm…I sent her a text saying: I'm getting you a Christmas present, want it after break?
I drifted through the rest of the store, still holding onto the walrus. A kit caught my eye. It contained a bunch of silly "disguises": fake glasses with a big nose, various facial hair (including a large, curly mustache), eyebrows, a few hats. Sora would be super entertained with this. I grabbed it, figuring I could get him something else too. My phone buzzed, and Naminé had replied with: Sure! Thanks Roxas. I have something for you too. Hope your break is going well. :)
I smiled. While it was a little formal, she always was a tad bit formal and polite, and it seemed like we could really be friends. That was a near miracle after our awkward dating experience.
I examined the walrus again. It was good as anything else right? I got it and the disguise kit, and then went into my favorite book store. I dragged myself away from the fiction section and picked up a new sketch pad for Naminé as well. In case she hated the walrus.
Sora would also receive a giant bag of candy. I got a variety mix from the candy store, getting a bit of sea salt taffy for myself. I chewed on it, trying to figure out what to get Axel. Something for his car? Snarky t-shirt? A joke gift…like something to help him with stats?
Wait.
Shouldn't he be done with that class now? I don't remember him saying anything about it…
I sent him a text, slightly annoyed. I was his tutor! Why didn't he say anything? Did he fail?
I looped the mall a few times. I was getting tired at this point. Axel finally responded, telling me that he barely passed and didn't want to mention it because "you probably wanted me to get like an A." I scoffed. If he was happy with a low C, so was I, and besides that meant he wouldn't have to retake it.
We'll have to celebrate sometime, I sent.
What should I get Axel for Christmas? My head started to pound. Nothing looked good. Santa boxers? PJs? What size is he? He's too tall to fit anything!
Food…not good enough. Come on, Roxas, if he can think of something so can you…
I finally found it. An Xbox controller decorated with flames. What else could he want? He had been complaining about only having two controllers, and he likes fire, right? I picked up the box, weighing it in my hands; my mind slowed down a bit, happy with this. Finally! It wasn't too fancy, but it also felt like enough.
I raced home, excited.