.o.O.o.

I own nothing! Please don't sue me!

For additional warnings, disclaimers, and summary, see the first chapter!

.x.x.x.

I'm holdin' on your rope
got me ten feet off the ground
I'm hearin' what you say but
I just can't make a sound
You tell me that you need me
then you go and cut me down

"Apologize" – Timbaland feat. One Republic

.o.O.o.

Fool Me Twice…

Just Say "Sorry" (It's Never Too Late)

-o-

Roxas hated the feeling of waking up and knowing that something was wrong with his life, even if he couldn't quite immediately put his finger on it in his muddled, still half-asleep brain. It was as if during that brief period of time of hazy confusion right between sleeping and waking, there was a moment of unrest, of questioning, of vague unawareness, before the floodgates opened and everything came crashing back in a rush of clarity.

"Uuuuuuuurgh."

Rolling onto his back and pressing his palms firmly down over his eyes, Roxas tried to process everything. Last night replayed over and over in his mind – the way he'd reacted, the way Axel had looked at him, the utter regret he'd felt as the redhead walked right out the door. Roxas had stayed frozen for a good five minutes or so after Axel had left, only to be jolted back into reality when Sora offered him a plate of dinner and a glass of juice.

The blonde had promptly stood and walked straight to bed without a word, flopping down and groaning in frustration. Urgh. He'd been so close to fixing things. What with the day of hanging out, the genuine bonding time, the little moment that they had been about to have…

"God. What the hell?" Roxas lamented, pulling his pillow out from under his head and smushing it over his face. "Can't I ever catch a break?"

It was late morning, and everyone else was already out of the house; Hayner's spot on his side of the bed was long since cold, and there was no enthusiastic conversation by Sora drifting up the stairs or clanking of pans from Riku making breakfast.

It wasn't a surprise that he had slept in, though. Roxas had spent most of the night tossing and turning and hating himself, or passing out in exhaustion, only to be plagued by agonizing dreams.

"Grah." He growled, rolling out of bed. Hunger suddenly took precedence. Last night he had registered little interest in eating dinner, but right now his stomach was telling him that he needed to get his sorry ass down to the kitchen and feed it ASAP.

Dragging himself downstairs, Roxas discovered a note on the fridge from Riku, telling him that he and Sora had gone on a walk and would be home later in the afternoon. He heated up some leftover oatmeal that had been left in the refrigerator for him, and contemplated what his next plan of attack would be, in regards to the Axel situation.

Okay, well obviously he needed to go talk to Axel. It would be awkward and embarrassing and confusing, but darnit it was something he had to buck up and do! Reluctantly trekking back upstairs and getting dressed, Roxas grabbed his coat and boots before heading out into the snow.

Yet again there had been no snowfall overnight, and the path from the cabin to the lodge was getting very worn. Roxas's breath came out in frosty puffs as he took in the slightly dirty, mucked-up snow. It was a little depressing, really. He'd always had an image of snow being crystalline and perfect and white, but with so many people walking through it, a result of dirty, muddled chunks was seemingly inevitable.

Roxas was actually a little butt-hurt at nature over this, because he would never ever admit it out loud, but… he had really wanted to experience the magic of his first snowfall. Soft flakes falling from the sky and covering the world in a blanket of white and all that.

Before long his feet had taken him to the lodge, and Roxas paused outside the doors, not sure if he should actually go in or not. In or out? Confrontation, or blissful avoidance? Decisions, decisions…

"Uuurgh, fine." Roxas grumbled to himself, pushing the doors open and stepping inside. He started heading to the gift shop area, where he had seen Axel the other day when Sora talked to him, but was caught by surprise when he saw a flash of red behind the café counter.

Aw crap, Axel had noticed him too, when the stupid little bell above the door had dinged. There was almost no one else in the lodge that morning, leaving Roxas right out in the open. But… Axel didn't look completely bent out of shape at him. He just looked kind of… blank. that was a good sign, right? Operating on this logic, Roxas headed over to the café, intent on playing it casual and having a nice normal conversation with the redhead so that the guy could tell that Roxas was hadn't meant to freak out over him last night.

"Uh… hey, Axel." Roxas greeted, stepping up to the counter.

"What can I get for you, sir?" Axel asked in a very clipped, on-the-job-like voice. Roxas furrowed his brows, looking around to see if Axel was being overseen by a boss or something, and that was the reason for the formality. But he didn't see much of anyone hanging around, let alone an observing boss-type figure, so he was a little confused.

"Um, sir?" Roxas questioned, thrown off by the use of such an honourific. "And I didn't really come here to get a drink, I just… wanted to stop by and say hey. You, uh, left pretty fast last night and all."

"Yeah, guess I did." Axel said with a shrug, picking up a wet mug and cleaning it with a dish towel.

"So then…" Roxas continued, trudging onwards. "Are you working all day? Cause I was thinking maybe later you might want to –"

"Yeah, I'm working." Axel interrupted with a frown. "And why would you want to go anywhere with me, anyways?"

"Uh…"

"I mean someone might see us."

"Axel, I –"

"Becauseheaven forbid you might be associated with me in public, right?"

"Axel, what the hell!" Roxas asked, exasperated. "Why are you being like this?"

The moment he said it, Roxas wanted to go jump off of the tallest mountain he could climb and smash to the earth in a fatal plummet. Twice. The look of incredulity that Axel was giving him assured Roxas that the redhead had also caught on to the moronic irony of the question, and he was no doubt extremely irritated at Roxas's insensitivity, as he had every right to be.

"Why am I acting like this?" Axel asked back. "Really, Roxas?Seriously?"

"Uh…" Roxas fiddled with his hands, wringing them nervously. "Okay, so I guess maybe I have an idea of why you're possibly a little mad, but if you'll just let me explain, I promise that there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for –"

"Perfectly reasonable my ass!" Axel hissed, and it was the first time Roxas had ever actually seen him pissed like this. The taller make snapped his head to the side, fixing a look at Ven, who had just come to join him with a box of café items retrieved from the storage room. Roxas glared at him, both for interrupting, and simply for being who he was.

"Ven, I'm taking a break."

The blonde looked hesitantly questioning, as if he was reluctant to know what was going on, but feeling it his duty to say something, nevertheless. "Uh, Axel… I don't really think that –"

"I'M TAKING A FUCKING BREAK."

Wide eyed in shock, Ven nodded in agreement, and Axel turned his attention back to Roxas, pointing a finger right in his face. "You. Come with me."

Absolutely terrified for his life, Roxas obediently followed after the livid redhead, who was somehow managing to look quite intimidating, even in an apron. The small part of Roxas's brain that wasn't wetting itself in fear was impressed.

Once he was out from behind the counter, Axel reached out and grabbed for Roxas's wrist, literally dragging him along like a stubborn child or reluctant pet. Roxas was a little insulted, but figured that now wasn't the time to be indignant about it.

He found himself being dragged to the exact storage room that Sora and Axel had conversed in. Not that he could blurt out an "OH HEY I'VE BEEN HERE BEFORE" or anything, but he mentally took note of it, at any rate.

As soon as they got in the room, Axel closed the door behind them, rather harshly. He then turned right around, glaring at Roxas. "So what's your deal?"

"Deal?" Roxas echoed. He had a deal? Not to feign ignorance, but…"What deal?"

"The deal." Axel clarified, narrowing his eyes. "Where you think it's cool to play hot and cold with my feelings. Is this some kind of a game to you? See how long you can string Axel along before cutting him off, and then doing it all over again?"

"Wha… no!" Roxas replied, a bit of anger in his tone and a scowl on his features. He didn't appreciate being painted as such an insensitive asshole… even if Axel did have a point. "I'm not 'playing a game', Axel!"

"Well it sure as hell feels like it!" Axel growled, stepping closer. This was a problem for Roxas, because Axel was significantly taller than him, and he felt a little stupid having to look up at the person he was trying to have an argument with. It certainly made him feel like he had lost a little leverage for defending himself.

"Well I'm not that kind of person, Axel!" he countered, clenching and unclenching his fist in frustration.

"How would I know that!?" Axel snapped back, and Roxas was a little insulted. "When have you ever been really honest with me, or told me what you think or feel?"

Roxas made to interrupt and defend himself, but Axel raised a hand, butting him off. "Roxas, all we ever do is play this little tug of war with eachother, trying to figure out what's going on with one another, and when we were both trying to figure it out, that was one thing… but it's completely different now! Now it's like… it's like there's no balance, and the ball's in your court so you keep baiting me along and then cutting me off, and all I'm doing is trying to go along with it and keep up! But all I'm getting from you is mixed messages, and I'm not sure if you know how that feels, but it fucking sucks, okay?"

Ooooooh. Wow. So Roxas was feelingpretty bad right about now. Not that he was going to admit that, of course, but it felt like Axel had just thrown all of his bad behaviour over the past few months back in his face, and it was… pretty embarrassing. Not to mention highly rude, when looked at from the other side of the fence, perspectively. A blush rose to his cheeks, and he tried to play it off as if the flush was out of anger.

"Okay look, Axel… I'm sorry, but I was just trying to figure things out, okay? Not all of us can just pick something completely insane to do and just go with it, alright?"

Aw crap, he'd said something he couldn't have again. He could tell by the way Axel stepped back, fixing him with an angered and hurt expression that the taller male had realized he just labeled them being together "insane", and… that probably hadn't been the best way to refer to such a touchy subject matter that held Axel's feelings.

"Insane or not," Axel began, voice low and level. "You don't get to go around playing with other people's feelings while you try to figure out your own! You have to think about them too, and it's not like you can just throw them a bone on an issue, and then take it right back, over and over again. That's cruel, Roxas."

Even though he knew he was in the wrong, Roxas still managed to be offended that Axel kept placing such negative attributes on him.

"I'm nottrying to be cruel, Axel – I'm trying to be rational."

"Wellrational," Axel shot back, stepping forward and pinning Roxas against the wall. His bright green eyes sparked with danger, and his face was mere inches away from Roxas's own. "isn't playing the same little game with someone over and over again without cluing the other person in as to what you're doing!"

"It's not agame, Axel." Roxas growled, feeling very small and trapped, but refusing to show how intimidated he was. "It's trying to make sense of the situation!"

"By going in circles?"

"It's confusing for me, okay?"

"Well that doesn't mean you have to drag me down into your little bog of confusion as well!"

"I wasn'ttrying to dra–"

"Yeah, but that doesn't change the fact that you still did!"

"You know, Axel, this isn't allabout –"

"Me? It isn't all about me? That's funny, because it sure seems like this whole fucking mess is revolving around your feelings towards m–"

"I was scared, okay!?"

Axel had no immediate response to Roxas's outburst, and he in fact looked quite taken aback. Roxas clenched and unclenched his fists in frustration, feeling wet pricklings of tears at the corners of his eyes. Oh no, that certainly wouldn't do. Fight them, Roxas, be a man!

The redhead was looking at Roxas skeptically, not saying anything, wordlessly prompting him to continue.

"I… I just…" Roxas tried to explain, blinking rapidly. "I mean, come on Axel. This shit freaks me out, okay? I try to keep it inside, but like… this is crazy for me. I… I never would have expected it, okay? So I lay awake at night trying to figure it out, and sometimes it feels like I should go for it, and other times it seems like I should stay the hell away from it, but then when I get around you none of it makes any sense. So I just get freaked the fuck out, 'cause it's not something I'm used to dealing with, okay? I'm not trying to… to fuckin' string you along, but it's a little hard to be completely calm and natural about it, okay?"

Axel still wasn't saying anything, and not only that, he was now giving Roxas areally weird look that the blonde couldn't quite interpret. So Roxas plowed on, figuring he might as well just let it all out, now that he'd gotten started.

"So… okay fine, I like you, Axel. I do. But do you have any idea how hard that is for me to admit? Even to myself? Part of it is kinda cool, but a lot of it is just really overwhelming, especially since… since it's so fucking intense how much I think about you and try to understand why this works. And like… I have no idea what to do. So I act all crazy, and I'm sorry, okay? But it's only because I fucking like you."

Roxas had run out of things to say. Axel was still giving him that funny look, and Roxas was on the verge of shoving the redhead off and getting the hell out of there when Axel suddenly pushed Roxas fully up against the wall, leaning down and pressing up against him, meshing their lips into a passionate kiss.

Roxas's brain short circuited. Um… what the hell was going on?

But Axel didn't seem to care about the spontaneity of the situation, and he pressed closer, lifting Roxas up a bit against the wall so that they were on an even height with eachother. Surprised by the sudden action and loss of balance, Roxas threw his arms out, and ended up locking them around Axel's neck to keep himself steady. Axel fit their bodies together and tilted his head to the side, changing the angle of their kissing. Roxas was still completely lost as to why this was even occurring, but with all the pent up energy he had in him from their argument, he found this to be a rather satisfactory form of release.

Tightening his arms around Axel's neck, he drew the redhead closer, opening his mouth in an invitation for Axel to deepen their exchange. Axel took full advantage of the situation presented to him, slipping his tongue into Roxas's mouth and doing a sweep of it before he pulled back to draw the blonde lower lip into his mouth, eagerly sucking and nibbling on it.

Groaning, Roxas wrapped his legs around Axel's waist, feeling very lightheaded. Axel moved his hands to the back of Roxas's thighs, supporting him and gripping desperately.

Their kissing became sloppy, hurried, as they fueled eachother's need. Hands began wandering, and bodies began undulating, pressing together in a way that made both boys groan. Axel bit down on the junction between Roxas's neck and shoulder in an attempt to stifle his noises as he moved his hips, but Roxas had nothing to keep his own mouth occupied, so he couldn't help the strangled whimpers that escaped.

From the angle they were at, the placing was an almost perfect mimicry of a much more intimate meeting of bodies, and the similarity was lost on neither of the boys. Clothes separated them, but the intention was clear, and Roxas pressed his hips down to meet Axel's slow, upward grinding. The redhead gave a low growl, digging his fingers into Roxas's thighs as he hoisted him into a better position.

"Aah… aah… nnnn, Axel…" Roxas panted, resting his head back against the wall and scrunching his eyes closed at the onslaught of sensation.

"Rox…" Axel answered, panting and moving to latch his lips onto the blonde's neck, sucking and leaving wet, open-mouthed kisses.

"Nnn!" Roxas keened, clenching his jaw and pushing his hips forward as a particularly sensitive spot was nipped. "Axel, I – "

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

Axel and Roxas barely had time to break apart before the door to the storage room was being slammed opened, and an annoyed looking Ven was stepping in.

"Hey Ax, I don't know what you think you're playing at, but … oh. Oh. Uh… wow, um…"

A pink hue flushed the blonde's cheeks as he realized what was going on right in front of him. Axel let out an annoyed sigh. "Just gimme another minute, okay?"

With a hasty nod, Ven backed out of the room, pulling the door closed behind him. Axel sighed, leaning forward and resting his forehead against the wall. Roxas was still propped up, held by Axel, and he suddenly felt extremely awkward. And very confused. The last thing he had heard from Axel was that he was pissed at Roxas's behaviour… and then he made out with his face? It didn't make sense.

'Who's giving out mixed messages NOW, Axel!' Roxas's brain chastised.

"Guess I gotta get back to work." Axel mumbled, forehead still against the wall, his words slightly muffled by Roxas's neck, which was, by the way, now sporting a rather impressive hickey. Roxas could feel it, right where Axel had bit down, and he wondered how on earth he was going to hide it.

"Wait, so…" Roxas began, brows furrowing. Axel pulled his face away from the wall, looking at Roxas as he talked. "What the hell was that? We were… we were fighting… Why did you just…?"

Axel smirked. "Roxas, all the stuff you said at the end there… do you realize that was the most honest explanation you've ever given me about the whole 'us' thing?"

"Uh…" Roxas looked away, blushing in embarrassment.

"No, no, no it's good." Axel assured him, gently turning Roxas's face back to look at him. "And… I get it now. Why you acted so funny."

"Yeah, uh… sorry again about that." Roxas sheepishly replied.

"It's alright." Axel told him. "Because you told me you like me. And… I guess maybe you were a little bit justified, Only just a little bit, but still… So, we'll just take it as it comes, okay?"

Roxas nodded, rather confused, but feeling indefinitely relieved nonetheless. "…okay."

"And besides." Axel continued with a smirk. "Now that I know that, I can molest you all I want, and even when you complain I'll know that deep down, you really want it."

"Axel, you ass." Roxas burst, embarrassed. Axel laughed.

"Nah, I'm kidding, I would never do that to you…"

"Thank you."

"… in public."

"AXEL!"

Laughing, Axel let Roxas slide down the wall, setting him on his unsteady feet. "Okay, but I really do have to get back to work. Venny'll skin me alive if I make him man the counter all by his scrawny little self."

The affectionate use of a nickname sparked something in Roxas, a remembrance of another issue he had regarding Axel, and he frowned.

"Axel, what the fuck is up with that kid?"

Axel raised an eyebrow. "Who, Ven?"

"Yes, Ven." Roxas retorted. "You can't honestly tell me he doesn't remind you of me. He practically stole my face. Where the hell did he come from?"

Axel grinned, elbowing Roxas lightly in the side. "Aaaaaw, is widdle Roxie jeaaaalous?"

Roxas glared. "Widdle Roxie wants to punch his face in." he darkly clarified. He had always been very sensitive about other people being considered more important than him, or having more worth to someone that he cared about.

Axel rolled his eyes. "He's just some kid I work with, Rox. Yeah, he reminds me of you a bit with how he looks, but he's not you. So it really doesn't matter to me what he looks like. What, did you think I was having some weird scandalous affair with him in an attempt to replace you or something?"

"Uh…" Roxas replied, trying not to look guilty.

Shaking his head in amusement, Axel grabbed Roxas and pulled him into a warm hug. "Roxas, you are one messed up kid… but that's why I like you."

.o.x.O.x.o.

-o-

OH MAN YOU GUYS.

This chapter. Seriously. It killed me.

I've never really written fighting before. Heck, I try to avoid real-life fighting as much as I possibly can. So like… this was really weird for me. Unluckily for myself personally, but luckily for this story, I was able to create parallels from some stuff I've been going through lately in my own life, and was able to channel it into creating the fighting part for these two.

But GUH. Seriously you guys, be nice to eachother. Try not to fight and be mean and stuff. Being nice is… nicer. XD

Anyways, laptop is busted, but I am scrambling with alternate computers and frantic emailing to continue the bringing of this story to you! Because I loooove you guys! 8D

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!