Axel had to admit that it was nice to laugh again. He had had no reason to laugh in quite a few years, and thinking back, he didn't think he had ever laughed that hard. Definetly not over something as stupid as "Hugs of Squishy Doom." Honestly, he probably wouldn't have even chuckled at it without Roxas' reaction. That was what had set him over the edge. Roxas had been laughing so hysterically, Axel couldn't help but join in. He half expected Cloud to add to the merriment when Roxas had told him the joke. Cloud had kept his composure however. He wasn't a cop for nothing, Axel decided. After Cloud left to get the pizza, Axel and Roxas had managed to remain sober, and had sat back down on the couch. Both looked up, and were met with a pitch black screen. Axel raised an eyebrow, wondering if this was some kind of ploy. Was something mortifying going to pop out of the darkness? Or was it a disk error...

"Oh! We unplugged the TV!" Roxas remarked, then got down on his hands and knees to fix the wiring problem.

Now, Axel had always considered himself to be Bi. Still, he had also considered himself a rather straight-swinging Bisexual. However, he couldn't keep his eyes from wandering to the blonde's cute little butt. Bent over like that, with his shorts hugging him just right, Roxas looked absolutely delicious. That is what Axel was thinking, until he mentally slapped himself for thinking such things. Roxas was a BOY. A YOUNGER boy. A younger boy whom Axel would be LIVING WITH for the next few years. He COULD NOT be thinking of Roxas in this manner, no matter how good his ass looked when it was up in the air like that... Axel physically smacked himself this time, the sound alarming Roxas enough for him to turn and glance back at Axel over his shoulder.

"Um... Are you okay?" Axel felt the blush on his cheeks. One of the many downfalls of being sober; embarrassment was a tangible emotion once again.

"Yeah. Fine." Roxas gave him a look that said he was still worried, but decided to go back to the wiring. Good timing too, Axel decided, because the way Roxas had been looking at him was painfully irresistible. So innocently concerned... Axel was tempted to slap himself again, but saved himself the embarrassment. Roxas continued to fuss with the cords a few more moments, before practically jumping up off the ground and clapping his hands together.

"Hah! Fixed it!" He exclaimed triumphantly before making his way over to the couch and taking his seat. Axel watched as he walked over, and found his cheeks to be heating up. He felt awkward, and he didn't know why. Whatever the reason, Axel wanted the silence to end somehow.

"Um... Didn't you just have to plug it back in?" It was a simple conversation starter, but it was a conversation starter non-the-less.

"Well, yeah, but the cords were all mixed up, so I wanted to organize them real fast." Roxas looked down at his feet sheepishly as he said it.

"Oh? I thought you said that you didn't like to clean." Roxas nodded.

"I don't. But I must admit, it gets hard to maneuver around back there when the cords get like that. I mean, I was already down there, I figured I might as well." Axel shook his head, wanting to laugh at the walking contradiction.

"Alrighty then. What are we watching, anyway? I forgot to ask." Roxas smiled up at Axel, which immediately sent Axel's heart into his stomach. That smile couldn't mean anything good...

"The Ring." Axel took a moment to process that, then visibly relaxed and chuckled.

"Oh. Man, you had me worried there for a minute. I thought you were gonna put on some serious shit, like Saw or something." Roxas made a face at that.

"Ew! No, I can't stand the Saw movies! They're so pointless and gross! I mean, I think the whole reason they were made was so the director could live his sick fantasies! Sick fantasies of blood and guts and bloody guts and EW!" Axel's eyes had widened at the blonde's little rant, but they slowly returned to their normal size, and he began to laugh.

"I take it you aren't big on the gore then?" Roxas shook his head and stuck his tongue out.

"Gore isn't scary. It's just gross. I hate gory movies." Axel nodded his head in agreement, still laughing lightly.

"Me too. I like the good old classics. Good choice, by the way. Not the scariest movie in the world, but a good movie." Roxas nodded in appreciation.

"It was the first one I ever saw, so I can't help but love it." Axel offered a smile before his attention was stolen away by the start menu. Roxas noticed as well, and pressed the play button to start the movie. They waited in silent anticipation as the movie began, and got through most of the opening scene, with the two girls at home alone. Despite the fact that both of them had seen the movie multiple times, they both jumped when the house phone rang in unison with the movie. They gave each other a look, confirming that both were unsettled by the strange coincidence. The phone continued to ring.

"Um... Will you get that Axel?" The red-head looked at the blonde incredulously.

"It's your phone." Roxas seemed to tense at that, and looked wearily at the phone.

"But... You're older. The eldest should deal with business." Axel shook his head. He wasn't answering that phone if Roxas paid him... Okay, maybe if he paid enough, but that was unlikely.

"But no one is expecting me to be here. They'll probably freak out an think I'm some murderer, or a rapist or something." Again Roxas began to fret.

"B-but... I'm scared." Axel sighed. He couldn't say no now. Roxas had admitted his fear, so it would make Axel an ass if he didn't do it. He got up and walked over to the still ringing phone. Roxas paused the movie, and watched in anticipation.

"What's your last name, Blondie?" Axel had done it on purpose, and enjoyed the agitated look that Roxas gave him. The blonde kept his mouth shut about it though. After all, Axel was answering his death call for Roxas.

"Strife." Axel couldn't help but scoff at the prissy sounding name. He then returned to the dilemma at hand. The answering of the cursed phone. He took in a deep breath before pulling the phone off the hook.

"What took you so long to answer, Roxas? I mean jeez! What are you watching, The Ring?" Axel hesitated. It sounded like Cloud, but phones changed voices.

"Um... Strife Residence?" It was more of a question than a statement. There was a pause as Cloud obviously realised his mistake.

"Oh, sorry Axel. Not used to there being another person in the house." Yeah, Axel could tell.

"S'alright. You wanna talk to Roxas? Oh, and we are watching The Ring, by the way. How'd you know?"

"Cause if I call and he's watching it, he never picks up the phone. And yeah, could you put him on?" Axel gave a quick sure before chucking the phone at Roxas. Roxas ducked in an attempt to avoid it, but just ended up getting popped in the head. Rubbing his forehead where the phone had hit, he gave Axel a worried look.

"Is it Samara?" Axel couldn't tell if Roxas was really scared, or if he was just a really good actor.

"No, it's Cloud. Still just as scary in my opinion." Roxas giggled before bringing the phone to his ear and beginning his conversation with Cloud. Axel waited for a moment, ready to have the phone thrown back to him to put on the hook, but it seemed that whatever the two blondes were talking about was rather important. Axel figured they'd be at it for awhile, and decided to go grab some fresh air. He walked around to the front entrance, and opened the door. Stepping outside felt wonderful. Axel sat down on the top stair of the porch. It was rather reminiscent of how he and Saix used to sit and get wet on Saix's porch. That's when it hit Axel: He was free! He could call for some dust!

He grabbed his cell out of his pocket, which had been returned to him after he was released into Cloud's custody, and started going through his contact list. He decided that he would have to delete a lot of the names he had. After you get caught, people get standoffish. Though he himself had never had the pleasure, Axel heard stories of shootings between friends all too often. Continuing his search, Axel couldn't help but pause at Saix's name. Saix... His best friend, his most trusted ally, his first man-crush...

Axel shook his head, as if the action would clear it of the thoughts. He highlighted the name, pressed enter, then highlighted "Delete". Again, he couldn't help but pause to take in the full impact of the name. After all, it had meant so much to him, for so long. But apparently it meant nothing to Saix. He was only concerned for himself, if at all. Axel found himself intensely angry all of a sudden, and pushed the enter button harshly. He watched the hourglass turning around on the screen as the name of the most important person in his life was erased. Satisfied, Axel was returned to the top of the list.

He remembered his purpose, and began searching the names again. After looking at all of the plausible candidates, he settled for Demyx. Demyx wasn't a user, just a dealer. He was indifferent to the entire situation. As long as he had his baggy of weed, he was fine with just about anything. That's what made him such a great choice; He would trade the hard stuff for a little pot. Axel wasn't complaining, but he felt like he was cheating the blonde half the time. But, if it made mullet-head happy, who was Axel to object. Besides, Axel got his dust pretty reasonably. It was never laced coming from Demyx, and it was some of the purest stuff Axel had ever had. Turns out Demyx's boyfriend made it himself. Another perk was that Demyx didn't ask for immediate payment. He got the money sitch. As long as he got his dues within a reasonable amount of time, he didn't have a problem. But if someone neglected to pay/trade, Demyx sent his boyfriend after them. Now Zexion, he didn't look like someone to be feared, considering his short stature and feminine qualities, but if he was out to get you... Better make yourself disappear. You wouldn't have a face to speak of, or with, once he finished with you. But Axel always paid up, so there wasn't really a need for that fear.

Axel pushed call, and waited for the stoner to pick up. The ringer sounded five times before Demyx answered with a lazy "What's up?"

"Nothin' much. You got any dust on you?" Demyx giggled girlishly, obviously having chose to add alcohol to his already intoxicated manner.

"Fuck yeah. Don't I always? Want some?" Axel scoffed at the stupid question.

"What do you think? Do I ever call you for anything else?" Demyx laughed again, a bit more composed this time.

"Aww, so you're just using me, Ax? I'm so hurt!"

"Mm. I'm sure."

"Alright, jokes aside, how much you want?" Axel thought this over. He didn't know when his next chance would be to get any, so he figured he should get a lot.

"Um..." He was cut off by Demyx, who seemed to be conversing with someone on the other line.

"No... No! Stop! ... I know you're horny, but I'm on the phone! Just wait a sec! No!" Axel's eyes widened, realising almost immediately what was going on.

"Um... Am I interrupting?"

"Well, yeah. But honestly, it's a good thing you are! He's fucked me five times already Axel! Can you believe that? And he wants more! I don't think Zexion is human!" Axel chuckled at the blonde's little dilemma. "Anyway, how much?" Axel nodded his head, as though Demyx could see the gesture.

"Um... How about..." His sentence was cut short, as his phone was yanked from his hand. "H-Hey!" He looked up to see a familiar blonde glaring at him.

"Sorry, Mr. Whoever-you-are, but Axel had decided to quit drugs. Have a nice day." And with that Roxas hung up. Axel stared at him incredulously, realising that his chances of getting wet that evening were getting smaller by the second.

"Um, excuse me, but I was on the phone." Roxas shot him a death glare that Axel couldn't muster the coherency to believe the blonde had made.

"Yeah, on the phone with a drug dealer." Axel opened his mouth to retaliate, but closed it again. After all, it was the truth.

"What's it to you if I was?" Roxas gave him another long glare, before pocketing the phone in his hand.

"I'm confiscating your phone. You can't have it back until I deem you fit to have it returned." With that, he turned and strode into the house, completely ignoring Axel's previous comment, much to Axel's disliking. The redhead stood and followed Roxas into the house, attempting to come up with a decent reason not to wring the blonde's neck.

"Y-You can't take my phone! It's mine!" Roxas scoffed at the remark.

"Not anymore." Axel blanched. Did this kid have any sense of self preservation? He took a quicker stride to catch up to Roxas.

"You aren't my guardian! You can't take it!" Axel assumed he had Roxas beat with this one, but somehow the blonde prevailed.

"I am when Cloud is out. I'm in charge." Axel shook his head in disbelief.

"He never said that!" The blonde tsked, and shook his head.

"He didn't have to. It's a given. I'm more mature, therefore, I'm in charge. And that being said, I confiscated your phone. Don't worry, I'll give it to Cloud when he gets back, if it makes you feel any better." Axel groaned out his response to that.

"Of course that doesn't make me feel better! Just give me my phone!" At this point they had returned to the living room, and Roxas took his seat on the couch.

"Nope." His air of finality indicated to Axel that the topic wasn't up for further conversation. Defeated, Axel sat and crossed his arms.

"Fucking brat."

"Language." Axel scoffed.

"You aren't my god damned mommy!" Roxas flew up, anger in his eyes.

"No, no I'm not! And I feel awful for the poor woman who bore you! What did she ever do to deserve this? I wondered at first why you lived alone, but I think it's pretty obvious at this point! I'm sure nobody could put up with your crap for more than two days at the most! But you don't get a choice anymore! You're stuck here, whether you like it or not, and in this house, we watch what we say, and, quite simply, we don't do drugs! So you'd better get with the program, Axel, or the program is going to beat you to a bloody pulp. You are GOING to quit, you are GOING to use appropriate language, and you are GOING to get used to it! If you think for five seconds that Cloud is going to put up with you, let me tell you now, you are sadly mistaken! I'm honestly surprised that he hasn't torn you a new one! So sit down, shut up, and grow up!" Roxas stormed out of the room after he finished, right out the back door, and slammed it behind him. Axel stared after him, bewildered and unable to move. He figured the blonde could get angry, but that was... Scary. He had actually trembled a bit as Roxas screamed at him. Why the younger had lost his composure like that, Axel didn't know. Had he been faking the whole 'acceptance' thing the whole time? Had Axel said something horrendously wrong? When he thought about it, Axel couldn't help but notice that this was the first time he had ever questioned his own choices and authority. What about this fifteen year old boy had suddenly made him dote the conception of misdoing? Why did he fear a fifteen year old in the first place.

But Axel knew the answers. He tried to lie to himself, but it wasn't working. To be honest, Axel liked the atmosphere that Roxas created. Kind, welcoming, understanding, everything Axel had craved from the people around him, that hadn't been delivered. Roxas had attempted to feed Axel's hunger, and Axel ended up shutting him out. Realising the stupidity of his stubbornness, Axel went to the backdoor, and put his hand on the cold, bronze knob. But why had he been scared? Hand still on the knob, he thought, and tried to process a reason. Perhaps the shouting? But Axel did enough of that himself. The threats? Again, plenty of those. All that left was Roxas himself, but the boy was hardly intimidating. Despite his aversion to it, Axel tried to replay the scene in his head, and tried to notice the little things. After he got to the point that Roxas was shouting, Axel realised what it was.

"His eyes!" Roxas' bright crystal blue eyes had a hurt glint to them, which had sent a message to Axel. The kind of feeling you get when talking of death to a war veteran, a feeling of knowledge. Or perhaps depravity. That thing that says to you, "Aren't you a lucky bastard!" And it dawned on Axel; Where were Roxas' parents? Roxas lived alone with Cloud, and though a Grandmother had been mentioned, not a word of Mommy or Daddy had been spoken. Did something happen? Did Roxas take offense? Now Axel was fretting. If Roxas was mad at him, Axel might get some time to think, which would lead to withdrawals, and that meant many bad things. So, while it was selfish, Axel flung the door open and ran out, beginning his search for his little anti-drug.

Axel was a bit surprised to find himself face to face with a very steep, earthen hill. Who had decided it was a good idea to put a house at the bottom of an abnormally large hill was beyond Axel. The foot of it was clear and grassy, obviously meant to be a yard, but the summit plunged immediately into dense forest. This was going downhill for Axel, and fast. He didn't know this area, and he was a little directionally challenged. If he wasn't careful, he would get lost. Still, he couldn't leave Roxas in that state. He needed to apologize to the blonde before he took to hating Axel. So, this in mind, Axel plunged in.

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Yeah, Axel was lost. He had honestly been expecting this to happen. He tried, in the beginning, to make mental markers as he went, but eventually the trees starting looking exactly alike. He had seen no sign of Roxas since he had left, and had no clue how long he had been looking for him. Perhaps Cloud was home with the pizza, and had found both boys missing. Maybe he called the cops, expecting the worst? The judge had said that the next time Axel was brought in, he was going to juvie, no questions asked. Of course, he wasn't really doing anything wrong at the moment, but he couldn't really prove it, and he doubted that Roxas would vouch for him at this point.

How big could a forest on a hill behind a couple of houses be? Axel was panicking at this point. Was he going in circles? Had he passed that tree? It looked awfully familiar... Was he going to die? How pathetic would that be? To die, one day after getting a second chance, at the hands of a pint sized forest. Not even dust, which would at least get him in the news paper somewhere other than just the obituaries. Drugged teens were a popular topic. But no, he was going to die because he couldn't get out of a backyard forest. If only he had some dust on him, so he could O.D. and get it over with fast, instead of starving to death.

Axel realised he was thinking of dust, and immediately tried to take his mind off of it, but it was too late. He felt a nasty crawling on his skin, and looked down at his arm. However, there was a disturbing absence of anything that could be causing the sensation. Axel freaked out, clawing at his arm. What was inside of him he didn't know, but he wanted it out. His nails tore into the skin, and blood began to seep. Axel paused, stunned he had drawn his own blood. It wasn't a lot, but it was still bleeding. Axel was wondering why his arm wasn't sending his brain the pain message, when he let out a low gasp and clasped his hand around his bleeding forearm. He had to make a mental note to never do that again. Who knew that clawing at flesh hurt so bad?

After his little episode, Axel decided that he could not allow himself to think of dust, especially if no one else was around. If he hadn't stopped when he did, he could have dug into an artery, and... Well, you get the point. He tried to push the pain to the back of his mind, and started to move forward again. He had to keep his cool. Roxas was out here somewhere, unless he had gone home... But surely somebody would come looking for Axel if he didn't return. Even if it was the police, that would be better than dieing in a forest.

The seemingly endless trees began to thin slowly. This gave Axel hope that he had found the edge, and would soon come to a street or row of houses. Despite not having found Roxas, Axel was content with having survived. However, when he got to the edge of the trees, he found himself in a clearing instead of in a street. He cursed, his hopes having been shattered ruthlessly. Grumbling, he cut through, planning on entering the dense trees on the opposite side. However, there was a rather appealing looking fallen tree. If he really tried, he could convince his imagination that it looked slightly similar to a couch. That was close enough for him at the moment. He made his way over, and hoisted himself up onto the thick trunk. He was about to swing his legs over the other side, when he noticed something spiky and... Blonde.

"ROXAS!" The blonde got a start, and sat up. He looked up at Axel groggily and yawned. Axel jumped down to the ground and looked Roxas over. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Roxas looked at him dumbly.

"What're you talkin' 'bout?" His words were slurred, and if Axel didn't know better, he would have sworn Roxas had smoked some pot. But he did know better.

"Were you sleeping?"

"Hmm...? Oh, yeah. Sup?" Axel looked at Roxas like he was crazy. Had he really forgotten everything that had happened? Just as he was thinking this, Roxas' face scrunched up, then his brows furrowed.

"Wait! I'm angry at you! Leave me alone!" Roxas stood with a scowl on his face, and turned to leave. After a brief moment of surprise, Axel burst out laughing. Roxas turned and gave him a confused glare. "What? What're you laughing at?" Axel tried to talk through his peals of laughter, but found it rather difficult.

"I'm sorry, sorry! It's just, I'm so relieved! I-I thought I was gonna die out here, and I thought that, if I couldn't find you, that I was gonna go to jail, and I thought I wasn't gonna get in the newspaper, and then you...!" He broke off in laughter again. Roxas' face scrunched again.

"You thought you were going to die...? But this forest isn't even two acres big..." Axel got a kick out of that too, and fell to the ground giggling. "And why would you go to jail? And what are you talking about 'not getting in the newspaper'?" Axel couldn't speak, but it was obvious that he was relieved. Roxas sighed. "Well... I guess I can forgive you this time... I did kind of overreact..." Roxas came back and squatted down next to the giggling redhead. "Hey, I get it alright? Let's go home." Axel nodded and stifled his laughter, with much difficulty. He got up and brushed his pants off, not able to contain the grin on his face. Roxas stood as well, then gave Axel a quick once over. "Oh! Axel, what happened to your arm?" Axel looked down, then remembered the little episode he had before finding the clearing.

"Right... Forgot about that... Um... Let's just say that withdrawal sucks..." Roxas' eyes widened, and it was obvious that he was worried. "Hey, don't give me that look. I'm alright. Or rather, I am now." Axel smiled to prove that the pain was bearable. Despite the doubt on his face, Roxas decided to let this one slip. He nodded, then did a little three-sixty with his eyes.

"It's starting to get dark... I wonder what time it is..." Axel nodded in agreement to the blonde's statement. "We should probably get home. I'm sure Cloud is freaking out right now. " So Axel had been right. He smirked at having guessed correctly. He was brought out of his proud thoughts by the shock of a hand in his. He looked down to find that Roxas had taken his hand. The blonde began to move forward, Axel in tow. Though it hurt his pride to have to be led out of a tiny forest by someone half his size, Axel definitely preferred this to dying. Roxas moved as though he knew where he was going, so Axel assumed that he did.

"Honestly Axel, how did you get lost in here? It's so small! No matter which direction you went in, you should end up at the edge. I've never once gotten lost!" Axel scratched the back of his head with his free hand.

"I dunno... I've never really been the best with directions... It's never been an important skill for me..." Roxas shook his head.

"And you knew that coming in?" He sounded either impressed or angry, Axel couldn't decide which.

"Yeah..." The blonde shook his head again.

"Why would you do that?" He sounded almost sad as he said it.

"Um... Well... I needed to find you... I couldn't just leave you out here like that..." Roxas seemed to tense a bit at Axel's words, but it went away so quickly that Axel had to question whether it really happened or not.

"I'm fine, obviously. You don't need to do reckless stuff like that for me." Axel smiled at the caring words.

"I'll remember that next time, if you promise me that you'll remember not to fall asleep in a forest where any manner of person could find you and do unspeakable things to you." Roxas stopped and turned at that, giving Axel a look that said he couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth.

"...What kind of neighborhood do you think this is?" Axel chuckled.

"All neighborhoods have their own creepers. You'd be surprised." Roxas shook his head, but turned and resumed walking.

"Whatever... What were you talking about when you said that you 'wouldn't get into the Newspaper'?" Roxas let the previous topic go, bringing up the next.

"Huh? Oh, right... Well, I thought I was gonna die, and I figured that dieing alone in the forest wouldn't really get me much of a headline..." Roxas scoffed. "Huh, What are you laughing at?"

"You can't be serious! Did you really think you were going to die out here? Even if you hadn't found me, don't you think that someone would come looking for you? Generally, when someone goes missing, a search party is sent out. This isn't a big area, so it really wouldn't be hard to find you." Axel's face flushed.

"S-Shut up! I panicked, alright?" He scowled as Roxas Giggled. They then fell into silence. Axel couldn't decide if it was awkward or comfortable, but Roxas decided to break it before he could come to a conclusion.

"Hey Axel?" He didn't turn, and kept walking.

"Yeah?"

"... I'm sorry." Axel gave the back of his head a confused look.

"I wasn't really angry... I know it was stupid to think I would die out here, you don't have to..."

"No, not for that... I'm sorry for blowing up like that earlier... It wasn't fair of me..." Axel thought back, and remembered the whole reason he had come out here.

"Oh! No, that was my fault. I shouldn't have called Demyx in the first place. I... I just couldn't help myself... I'm sorry." Roxas shook his head and turned, making eye contact at last.

"No. I mean, yes, it was stupid of you, but it wasn't worth all this. I just..." He sighed, and it seemed like he was trying to decide whether or not to tell Axel something. "I... My parents died a few years ago, so... When you brought up 'mommy', I just snapped." Axel nodded. He had figured as much, and he now felt even more awful.

"I'm sorry Roxas. I didn't mean to bring that kind of stuff up for you. I was just pissed, and I vented on you."

"Yeah, I did the same with you... So, wanna forget all of this and be friends?" Axel smiled and nodded, receiving a smile from Roxas in return. It had been a while since he had made a friend, the last one being Saix, and that hadn't turned out so well. He hoped that Roxas would be better for him. "Okay, glad to hear it. But..." He turned ad began walking again. "My friendship had some requirements. First, no drugs. Second, limited profanity, and yes, I altered that one a bit, just for you. Third... Well, I don't know yet, but I'll think of something..." Axel chuckled, liking this friendship quite a bit already.

A/N:Okay, well, Chapter 3, yeah? Not much to say, other than the fact that I unfortunately do not own these lovely characters. Thank you to all of the reviewers, you guys rock, and please read and review! Thank heavens for snow days, or this chapter would not be up as fast as it was! I GOT PROJECT DIVA! HELLZ TO THE YEAH! I love it sooooooo much! BUt ugh, gotta work on fanfics! Sorry for the wait, too, but my teachers have gone crazy and seem to think we need to work even harder! Mkay, that's all for right now, I'm going to start working on the next one, so please look forward to it!

NOTICE: I am currently looking for a beta, so if anyone is interested then please talk to me. Gotta be a patient person though! I've got a life too!