First and foremost, I'm sorry for the nearly month-long wait. A few things came up and then my muse totally left me, so I had to do this all on my own. Right now I have nobody to beta the story or just talk about it, so, if any of you have some time, I'd be very grateful if you'd write me. I really, really need somebody to throw ideas around with and to tell me what they think about my plans for the plot. Thanks in advance!

Thanks to all the reviewers, I answered each of you at the bottom of the chapter! I really appreciate it a lot, without you people, this chapter probably would still be stuck at two pages. Thanks!

I hope you have fun reading!

Shiruy

Mirage

"To be mature means to face, and not evade, every fresh crisis that comes."

-Fritz Kunkel

The second I opened my eyes I knew that it was too early. As in, way too early. The sun wasn't even up yet and the room was eerily silent. I slowly sat up and blinked surprised at the warm blanket someone had thrown over me. Seemed like I had fallen asleep on the couch last night…

I put my feet on the floor and shivered, it was rather cool in here and the coarse carpet beneath my feet made me wish I could just curl up on the couch again and fall back asleep. Sadly though, I felt rather awake and I knew from experience that it was rather unlikely that I could go back to sleep.

From what I could see, the living room and the kitchen were deserted, what most likely meant that Axel and Demyx were still asleep. And wasn't Zexion here, too? Well, maybe he went home or something.

I stood up, planning on finding a clock, but almost fell over my boots. Confused I stared at them, at my naked feet, and back at the boots. When had I taken them off? Or… had I taken them off? I blushed as I realized that one of the guys must have stripped me of my shoes and socks before tucking me in. Okay, that was… kind of embarrassing.

I trudged into the kitchen and leaned back against the table, not really knowing what to do. Maybe I should make the others breakfast, as a thank you for letting me stay over? Or maybe not. I wasn't in the mood to search every last cupboard for the things I would have needed.

I sighed and sat on the table behind me, bored out of my mind. Maybe I should just leave and try to sneak into the house before Cloud woke up, otherwise my escape yesterday would have been completely pointless. I laid down and stared up at the ceiling, noting several stains and cracks. Demyx or his parents should really repaint that sometime soon.

I closed my eyes and smiled at the picture I must have been presenting – laying spread out on the kitchen table, legs dangling over the edge and grinning at nothing. I took a deep breath and held it, counting the seconds until I heard the blood rushing in my ears and my chest hurt. There was some thumps from above, most likely the people living there moving around, and I was once again glad that I lived in a one-family house. At least there it was completely silent when I wanted it to be.

"Rox?"

I flinched and aprubtly sat up, only to squeak in surprise as I found myself almost nose to nose with a sleepy looking redhead who wore nothing but his black boxershorts. (And if my heart decided to beat faster that was because I was so surprised at his sudden appearance.)

"What are you doing on the table, Roxy?"

I blinked and scooted a few inches back so that there was at least some space between us. "I, uh, woke up and didn't know what to do, so I just…"

He grinned at me. "So you just laid down on the table?"

I smiled, too, and shrugged sheepishly. He chuckled quietly and leaned forward, resting one hand on either side of me and looming over me. I blinked again and leaned back further, so that I almost laid on the table and needed my elbows to prop me up.

"What are you doing, Axel?"

He came even closer and nuzzled my cheek, making me shiver as his lips brushed over my skin. I distantly thought that maybe I was supposed to push him away or something, but instead I returned the action, brushing skin against skin so that we were cheek to cheek and I could feel his breath on my ear.

"I'm only doing what you want me to, Roxas."

I didn't know why, but somehow that statement made sense. Besides, his voice was low and husky, making me think of all the things I wanted him to do to me, and the hot breath on my skin made my heart beat even faster. I didn't want to waste any thoughts on the why or how.

He laid a hand on my chin, gently turning my head until our lips met and I sighed happily, closing my eyes. He felt hot against me, his lips on mine, his hand in my hair, his body against mine, and I greeted the warmth eagerly. This was so perfect…

"Roxanne?"

I didn't want to stop and held on tighter, drawing him even closer. Why couldn't people leave me alone for once?

"Hey, Roxanne. Come on, wake up."

I blinked and opened my eyes, staring up at the redhead who was standing beside the table and looking down at me. What the…?

"Axel?"

He laughed and ruffled my hair, making me flinch back in surprise. What the hell was going on? Hadn't we just…?

"What are you doing sleeping on the kitchen table? Was the couch too comfortable for you?"

Sleeping? But I hadn't fallen asleep. Or… I blanched and sat up. Oh god. I had fallen asleep. And I had dreamed. About Axel! What the fuck was wrong with me?! Why would I be dreaming about that idiot? (The fact that I had dreamed about making out with said idiot was immediately sent on a permanent boat trip on De Nile.)

I hastily got off the table and tugged at my skirt, making sure everything was in place. "I, I just… I didn't mean to fall asleep, I was just bored and laid down for a bit."

He laughed again and leaned against the kitchen counter, and I noticed that he looked indeed different than the dream-Axel. For one thing, he was wearing a shirt and blue boxers, and for another thing, his hair was an absolute mess, sticking up all over the place. I snickered quietly, immediately drawing his attention.

"What? What are you laughing at?"

He frowned, trying to look all serious, but his hair… I snorted. Then giggled. Then outright laughed as his expression grew more and more confused.

"Your… your hair!" I pointed at him and leaned back against the table, clamping a hand over my mouth so that I wouldn't wake Demyx up, too. "You look absolutely ridiculous."

"Oh yeah?" He mock-frowned and put his hands on his hips. "Well, I'll have you know that you looked funny, too, sleeping on the table and grinning like an idiot. Must have been some pretty nice dream you were having."

Of course, my mind promptly flashed back to the, err, events of my dream and I blushed, ducking my head. Axel gaped at me for a few seconds, then he grinned like the cat that got the fish, the canary and the cream.

"You were having a pretty nice dream. Mind telling me about what? Or should I say, whom?"

"Weeell…" I smiled innocently. "You had a starring role-" His grin became impossibly wide. "-along with a penguin."

Immediately, the grin vanished. "A penguin? What the hell?"

I snickered and explained – or more like, fudged a random story. "Well, you were on this big quest to find a banana, but the penguin wanted to find a lamp, so you kind of argued the whole time, even when the ice floe broke because you had set it on fire…" I shrugged and smiled. "It was rather confusing."

He looked at me strangely, then he shook his head and smiled slightly. "You're weird."

He yawned and stretched, making me wince as something in his back cracked. "Anyway, it's way to early to be up. I think I'll go back to bed. And you?"

I shrugged and ran a hand through my short hair, making it spike up even more. "I don't know. I guess I'll go home."

He gave me a disbelieving look. "Now? It's freaking five in the morning."

"Yeah, but I've got nothing to do here. At least I can do my homework back home."

"Homework? You're going to make me miss you for stupid homework?" He dramatically clutched a hand over his heart and fell to his knees before me. "Oh Roxy, how can you be so cruel?"

I raised an eyebrow and answered thoughtfully, "Oh, you know, it's pretty easy. Anyway, you won't miss me, you'll sleep. So there."

He looked at me aghast, then raised his free hand to his forehead and mock-swooned. Drama queen. "Oh Roxanne! My precious Roxanne! You obviously have no idea how important you are to poor ol' me! I always miss you when you're away, no matter if I'm watching TV, sleeping or wan… walking. Taking a walk. Er, yeah."

I snorted at his slip, laughing against my will. Any girl would probably have been offended, but I was a guy, so I was allowed to think it was funny.

"You know what, Axel?" I grinned and leaned down to him, repressing another chuckle as he stared at me with the most innocent expression he could muster. "In a weirdly endearing way you're really stupid."

"What? Hey! I'm not stupid!" He hastily stood up and followed me as I walked back into the living room to retrieve my boots.

"Oh? Then you didn't just make a slip of the tongue that any other girl would take as good enough reason to slap you senseless?" I sat down on the couch, put on my socks and slipped into the shoes, starting to lace them up.

"Of course not! I merely said something very sweet and deserving of praise, namely that I miss you when I'm taking a walk and you're not there." He nodded firmly and I smiled at his rather poor attempt at convincing me.

"Sure you did." I stood up again and looked up at him (Damn, but he was tall, and not just your everyday woah-I-feel-small tall, but the omfg-I've-got-a-crick-in-my-neck tall). Then I decided to be impulsive and tugged at the front of his shirt, explaining my action with a nonchalant "Come down here, I've gotta tell you something."

He blinked in confusion and complied with my request, and before I could change my mind or panic about the consequences, I stood on the tip of my toes and gave him a little peck on the lips, drawing back a second later and chuckling at his dumbfounded expression.

"Well, I'll be going then. Bye." I turned around, intent on getting home, but the hand on my arm stopped me.

"Roxanne?" I looked over my shoulder at the redhead, noting with some satisfaction that he was blushing. "What... I mean, why…?"

I gave him an easy grin and shrugged. "Oh, you know, in case you need some inspiration during one of your… walks. Thanks for letting me spend the night."

And with that I brushed his hand off and left the apartment, already thinking about how Cloud would hopefully still be asleep and not be suffering from a random bout of insomnia. I had had enough social interaction for one morning.

The morning was very cool and I shivered as I walked down the street. Very few people were under way and it was so quiet that it felt almost surreal. I tugged at the edge of my skirt and wished I had worn pants, I was practically freezing. Unfortunately, all Kairi had given me were skirts, skirts, and more skirts. According to her I wasn't a very convincing girl in pants, hence my limited choice in wardrobe.

I sighed and watched the few people around me. A few meters ahead an old man was staggering along, full plastic bag in the one, empty bottle in the other hand, and I was careful not to walk too fast. I wasn't particularly eager to catch up to him. On the other side of the road a paperboy was slowly coming closer, stopping at every house to do his job.

My thoughts went back to the redhead and what I had done not too long ago. It was true that I kind of liked him, but as far as I knew, I didn't like him. The last week he had just been constantly there, and he was always happy and making me smile, although he could be rather annoying at times. So I had acted on impulse and kissed him, but it didn't mean anything. I mean, it wasn't like he could seriously fall in love with me or some such nonsense, after all, Roxanne didn't even really exist. Maybe I should-

"Roxanne?"

I jumped in surprise and quickly looked up, blinking as there was nobody there. Was I having hallucinations now, or what was going on?

"Over here!"

I glanced around and yes! – there was someone. The paperboy, in fact. What the hell? I didn't know any paperboys! Nonetheless, I crossed the streets and came closer, seeing as the guy was obviously waiting for me.

I tried to remember where I could have met him before, but nothing sprang to mind. He was tall, although not as tall as Axel, wore a jeans and a black hoodie, and his face was mostly hidden by the visor cap he wore.

"Uhm… hello?"

I knew that I sounded rather hesitant and suspicious, but hey, how would you have sounded when a random stranger somehow knew your name?

"Hey. Funny meeting you here, I thought that I wouldn't see you again for sure. What are you doing out so early in the morning?"

Okay, what the fuck? Who was this guy? Well, no choice but to ask. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

For a long moment the stranger just seemed to stare at me – I couldn't tell for sure, what with him hiding his face – and then he cuckled and slipped the cap off, freeing shoulder length hair that gleamed silver-white in the morning light. Oh. Ohhhhh.

"Riku?" Well, that certainly explained some things.

He nodded and smiled at me. "Yeah. So, what are you doing out so early?"

"Oh, just going home." I shrugged and took a closer look at him, surprised at what I saw. Last night it had already been pretty dark and his face had been obscured by the binoculars, so it was no wonder that I hadn't been able to recognize him, but now I had to admit that he was pretty darn handsome. Also, he looked to be at least four years older than me – I guessed somewhere around twenty.

For a second I was sorely tempted to play my role as a girl and swoon and blush over him, but then I got myself (more like, my hormones) under control and cocked my head to the side.

"So, paperboy?" I smirked a bit. "Wouldn't have pegged you as one."

He shrugged, too, and shifted the messenger bag on his shoulder. "Well, I'm only doing this for a few days, helping out a friend. He fell off a table and managed to sprain his ankle."

I laughed involuntarily and gave him an incredulous look. "How the hell did he manage to fall off a table? Or rather, what was he doing up there in the first place?"

He grinned and shrugged, explaining in a wry tone, "You see, there was this party, and we got into a drinking game, ending with him doing a strip tease on the table, but when he tried to get off again… well, he missed the chair."

"So, what do you do when you aren't partying or helping out friends?", I asked, slowly becoming curious about this guy I had met rather unconventionally.

"Oh, I go to the local uni, hoping to one day become an architect. You?"

University, huh? Seemed like this guy really was quite a bit older than me. Only one question remained: Why the hell was he talking to me?

"I recently switched to HB High, and am pretty much regretting it." I made a face to show my discontent with the new school, and he chuckled again.

"HBH is not that bad, my friends and I had some pretty good times there. Burned down the lab, once…"

I gaped as he trailed of in reminiscene. I had heard rumours about some idiots burning down the old lab a few years ago, but…"That was you?" He grinned and nodded in confirmation, and I shook my head in bemusement. Really, why was it downright impossible for me to meet someone normal (or at least sane) for once?

"Anyway, I have a job to finish, so… maybe I'll see you around. Or catch you on your boyfriend's balcony again."

I chuckled weakly and ran a hand through my hair, thinking back to our weird meeting last night. "Well, people-watching is more entertaining than Spongebob. And Axel's not my boyfriend, nor will he ever be. But you're right, I've got to get home. Bye."

I made to turn around and walk away, mulling over my rather strange morning, when a hand on my arm stopped me again and something was shoved in front of my face. The hell?

"This is where I usually work." He winked at me. "Come by some time and I'll give you a discount!" And with that he turned around and walked away, leaving me to stare at the flyer in my hand advertising a tattoo parlor.

"Huh. What the hell."

I shrugged to myself and stuffed the flyer into one of the skirt's pockets. Maybe I'd go there sometime.

Fifteen minutes later I opened the front door to our house as quietly as I could and slipped into the dark hallway. I couldn't hear a sound, so I guessed Cloud was still asleep (most likely Leon had worn him out), and I had enough time to safely get out of my girl clothes and take a shower.

I slinked down the hallway, already working at the zipper of Kairi's skirt, when there was a sound from the kitchen and I automatically glanced through the doorway, only to stop dead in my tracks.

Leon. In our kitchen. Naked. Naked Leon in our kitchen. And raiding our fridge! Oh my god.

I made an embarrassing sound somewhere between a squeak and a gasp and immediately, Leon spun around and stared at me with an astonished, horrified gaze that was probably a perfect immitation of mine. (Not that I had much reason to be horrified, because damn, but there was something really worth looking at for once. Cloud was so lucky.)

"Roxas."

I took a second to marvel at Leon's absolutely flat and nonchalant tone in the face of pure embarrassment, then I stared. Blinked. Stared some more. And really, how could I not? Leon was perfect. He was slender, but not skinny, muscular, but not some freaky body builder, his chest was smooth, but not like a teenager's… and damn, that faint blush looked good on him. Not to mention the love bites and scratches.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were coming home this early." He calmly grabbed a towel off the counter and covered his privates.

I think I was supposed to say something, accept his apology or at least look away, but all I could do was stare. Some small, neglectable part of my brain was screaming at me to run and pretend this never happened, but the main part of me was still stuck on the 'naked Leon in my kitchen' part.

"You still in there?" It was truly admirable how he sounded rather bored, although the blush on his cheeks had darkened.

I blinked, nodded once, and tried to ignore the newly awakened part of me that tried to convince me to jump him. Damn, but it had some pretty good arguments.

"Uhm, I'll just go upstairs."

To jump him or not to jump him, that was the big question. Or rather, the fight, namely between my hormones and my brain. I mean, he just stood there, naked, right in front of me. But he was Cloud's boyfriend. And my beloved brother would most likely slaughter me in a jealous rage if he ever found out about my thoughts right then. So, the real question was 'momentary gratification and brutal death', or 'cold shower and continuing my sad existence'?

(Un)Fortunately, Leon solved my mental dilemma for me. He came a few steps closer, obviously hoping we could just go upstairs in our rooms and pretend this never happened, but then he stopped again and just stared at me. For a moment I wondered what was wrong, but then I noticed where he was looking. Uh oh.

"…are you wearing a skirt?"

My cue to finally stop staring at him and admire the floor. Yuck, there was a dust bunny in the corner, along with a few cornflakes. I tried to come up with a reasonable answer to his stony gaze, but all I managed was a rather hesitant, "Uh… no?"

Leon sighed and ran a hand over his face, and I clenched my fists to stop myself from reaching out and checking if his hair really was as soft as it looked as it brushed against his collar-bone. Damn this guy. My crush would have been so easy to get rid of if he weren't so freaking hot.

"You are wearing a skirt."

Well, thanks for pointing it out, Sherlock, I hadn't noticed. I frowned and looked to the side, trying to ignore the blush heating my face. (Ohh, nice wall, it's so exciting. Not.)

"And make up. And fake breasts." I saw the corner of his lip twitch into an almost-smile and was torn between punching him and wanting to snog him senseless. Stupid sexy body, confusing my embarrassed, hormone-controlled mind. It just wasn't fair.

"Any particular reason why you're cross-dressing?"

I glowered at his chest (or rather, goggled) and answered snappishly, "Any particular reason why I shouldn't tell my brother that his boyfriend is parading around naked in front of me?"

For a long moment we glared at each other, both trying to get the other to give up first, but then he sighed again and shrugged. "Whatever."

He made to leave, but paused next to me and gently tugged at a strand of my hair, giving me one of his insufferable smirks. "You make a surprisingly pretty girl." Then he walked up the stairs, leaving me to stare at his ass and wondering if my face would ever regain its normal colour.

I drew in a shaky breath, slowly walked into the kitchen and sunk into one of the chairs by the table. Okay, so Leon had found out about me cross-dressing. Did that mean I had lost the bet? Well, as long as neither Sora nor Luxord found out about this morning, I guessed that I was safe. And Leon wasn't exactely the kind of guy who would go around telling people about our… encounter. So the bet was still on. Good. (Or bad?)

I glanced at the fridge, the picture of how he had stood in front of it immediately coming to mind. Damn, but it would be really hard to forget this. I closed my eyes and tried to distract myself, to think about something inconsequential. For example that documentary I had watched some time ago. It was about hyaenas, and gnus, and antelopes. And lions. Leons. Naked Leons in the kitchen.

A resounding 'thump' echoed through the room as my forehead hit the table.

"Fuck."

This thing isn't beta'd at all, like some of you may have noticed, which is because my beta mysteriously vanished. If anyone wants the job, feel free to write me.

Uh, sorry, but you'll just have to pick out your answer. When I started to write answers for all of you I didn't realize how much space this would take up. –smiles sheepishly-

FlamingDoritos (With me, every reviewer gets a mention. And you're right, cherry pie is pretty darn awesome.)Beutelmaus(-laughs- Well, I'm glad that you liked the chapter, but no, Rox didn't fall asleep on Axel. That would have been too cliché. And just so you know, I still adore 'Perfect Match'! Poor Roxas x.x Poor Axel! Poor everyone, really.)Veritas4Eternity(Thanks for your review! Sadly though, Axel won't meet Roxas for quite some time.)TheFoxGirlKitsune (I did that once, and I assure you, it's worth the weird looks you get from the people who see you.)Mourir(Thanks! I'm glad that it became clear that Axel really likes Rox, 'cause that was exactly my intention. –grin-)drace-hunter(Glad you liked it! –smile-)Gray-Rain Skies(You probably have no idea how much your review helped me in finishing this chapter. Every time I read it, it cheers me up like nothing else. Thanks! And about the tic-tac-toe thing: I seriously don't know where I got the idea. I just thought, what if I had been caught people watching? And so the whole thing came to be. –grin- And yes, I had a fun trip, thank you!)Riku-stalker(Don't we all wish we had an extremely hot guy across from us? –laugh- And yes, Sora's probably going to meet Riku some day.)kitfoxpup(Riku makes a re-appearance in this chapter, hope you like it just as much as the last. –smile- And yep, I know what you mean.)Bubblegum Head (-laughs- Glad to see I made you happy.)SoraPuppy(Yes, he did play tic-tac-toe with Riku and yes, I'd do it, too. I mean, what can it hurt? At least it'd be fun.), Adalibina (Thanks for your review! Although I have to admit that your continual feeling of dread is not exactly unjustified…)GROTESQUEpanda(I can understand how being a panda must be tiring. Just look at poor Gaara… -laughs-)Ichixrenji-smexy love(Riku's just the kind of guy who's good at everything, he can't help it.)DevilsThrillKitsune(Thanks for the rev and sorry for the long wait.)DarkLuminescence(Yup, Riku comes back and Roxas, well… He's very competitive.)Malik's Bunny Mika(-laugh- In Rox' eyes this story would be more than slightly sadistic, I think. He'd probably stab me with a rusty spoon or something along those lines… Anyway, thanks for the review!), Rockr4Life (It's funny, everyone comments on the thing with Riku, but while I wrote it it didn't seem like anything special. –blinks in confusion- Thanks for the rev!)Indie Rockin' Emo(To be honest, Sora thought absolutely nothing when he gave Roxas his new name. He just picked something that sounded at least similar. Your idea is funny, but like you said, I have it all thought out. –grin- Although Leon does get to play a bigger part… -snicker- And you can swear all you want in your reviews to my story, I disabled the filter.)xxlight-kitsune-chanxx(Axel won't find out about Roxas anytime soon, sorry. And Spongebob, well… xD I share Rox' opinion on it. Thanks for the review!)Axel Hikaru (Of course Roxas still has his manly side! I hate it when Rox is some stupid cry-baby with no spine what-so-ever… He's Sora's heartless, people, he's entitled to have some spunk!)kawaiifox1(Oh yeah, Axel will be weirded out alright when the time comes. –grin- Thanks for the rev!), dot dot dot (Thanks for your review!)Ako23(I made Axel very axely? –laughs- Glad to hear it, seeing as I never got to play the game and have therefore no idea how he really is.)Cleo Noir(Thanks for the review!), random person (Thanks.)Hyouga sama(Neither Axel nor I really know yet how he plans to convince Roxas to stay, but I'll think of something. –grin-)Kamiko-Miha(That's funny, 'cause I sometimes just walk around, too, and laugh when I think about a story… Most people around here probably think I'm crazy. Thanks for your review.)

And you know what? I just won't bother with that 'next chapter' thing anymore. By the time I get to writing it, my predictions aren't accurate anymore anyway.

Thanks for reading, and an extra thank you if you decide to leave a review! (Tell me what you think about the naked Leon! xD)

Shiruy