Red Light District

Chapter 2 - Mask

Glad to see you back for another chapter. Enjoy.

ViiiXiii

"Rox-as, C'mon! You don't wanna be late for lunch, do you? It's the best time of the day!" Axel prodded his best friend from his daze in the back of the stuffy classroom. The lunch bell had just rung and the students had all filed out, leaving the two boys and their impatient teacher. Axel assured said impatient teacher that he would lock up so that he could go get his own lunch.

Roxas had been quiet all morning, avoiding the redhead as best he could until third period, which he had with his best friend. Axel hadn't taken it as odd behaviour, continuing to push the night prior from his mind, and just let the blonde work out whatever needed working out. But, by the end of the period, Axel was fed up with the silent treatment. He sat himself on Roxas' desk and stopped the blonde from moving when he tried.

"Roxas, what's wrong? Are you ... feeling alright?"

The blonde avoided his gaze when he felt hands on his shoulders, remembering last night and secretly wondering why Axel hadn't called him out yet. He had to know. "Everything's fine. Leave me alone."

"It's obviously not fine if you'll push me away."

"What's it matter, Axel? Honestly, who cares? Just leave me alone."

Axel hesitated and Roxas took his chance to duck out from Axel's grasp. The redhead sat for a minute in shock, not moving again until the younger boy was almost at the door. He turned quickly before snapping, "Where were you last night?"

Roxas stopped, a visible shiver shaking his spine. He didn't turn to face his friend. "At work. You should know that. And, you never told me you had a brother."

--

"Axel, did you break him or something?"

Axel's face fell. "I don't think I did. I dunno what I could have done wrong. Zex-i-on, what do you think?"

The stoic boy didn't even lift his eye from his novel as Demyx leaned back over the picnic table to gaze at his friend upside-down. Axel was leaning against the leg of the table, his hands drawn up over his eyes, pulling at the dark teardrop tattoos below in exasperation. Demyx attempted to poke Zexion to gain his attention, but froze in his tracks when the slate-haired teen levelled his gaze, glaring at the disturbances.

"I think you are a meddling imbecile that should mind his own business. Obviously Roxas needs us to give him some distance, so, I believe that is what we should do. His not wanting a drive home today after school proves he is either upset with one of us or is just in need of some time to himself."

Demyx pouted, rolling to right himself before sending his torso over the concrete to view Axel's reaction to the quiet boy's sudden speech. The redhead just sighed before standing. "Fine, I guess. Think we should head home now?"

"Yeah, the traffic should have died down now, right?"

--

"Hey, bro, thanks for putting last night on my tab."

Axel stretched, smirking to cover for being so startled by his brother's grumpy entrance to his room. "Aww, Re, it isn't like you have much of a tab. You own the place."

"Still. That's comin' out of your allowance, you know."

"Ooh, nice threat. Got me good there."

"Hey, watch that tone."

The younger brother sighed before whipping the pillow behind his head at the intruder, laughing as it hit its target before being rebounded right back at him. "There we go! That's the Reno we all know and love!"

"Like this is hardly what you would call 'the Reno we all know and love.'" With that, the elder pounced, landing on his brother and slamming him back, laughing and rolling. "Are you going back again tonight?"

"I suppose. Depends on if I feel like it."

"Marluxia told me about Roxas."

Axel stopped for a moment, laying, panting beside his brother, having lost the friendly wrestling, thinking for a moment of the blonde best friend that seemed so lost before flickering to the new Roxas from the night before. Just thinking of the boy made Axel smirk.

"Did he say anything nice?"

"Only that you whipped him good."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, Roxas was distracted for the rest of the night. And, he also told me about the fact that you wanted to hog him all to yourself. Now, why is that? What's so special about him?"

Staying quiet, Axel pretended to ignore his brother before rolling up from the bed. "Tell me or I will make sure that you are the only one that doesn't have him." The threat worked and Axel spun around to face his elder brother. Reno just shrugged at the incredulous look he was receiving, a smirk spreading over his lips.

"I-I don't think he's cut out for the job."

"Then I'll fire him."

"No!"

"An attachment already, bro?"

Cheeks matching his hair, Axel turned away. He answered in a small voice. "I-I couldn't help it. It's his eyes. You hired him. You've seen him. You've seen those eyes. Don't you agree that they could tame even the most wild of beasts?"

Reno snorted. "Way to go all deep on me, there, Axe. Keep it up and I'll have to make sure you dumb it down a bit for my poor brain to understand!"

"Whatever. Does this mean that you want me to go see him?"

"You have to answer my question, first."

"Why do I not want anyone around him? He… I think he's special. I think that… he might be my best friend. And, if he is, then, all the better, because that means I can finally be with him. And, if he isn't, then, I still get to be with someone really amazing. He has such a flare about him, an untouchable, unconquerable flame. I want him."

"Have you told him this?"

"Hell no."

"Will you?"

"..."

Axel clenched his fists, turning on his brother. "I might, but, I want to make sure, first. In my heart, I'm kind of hoping that it isn't really my Rox-as in that place, because that would go against everything I know about him."

-

To Be Continued

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Another chapter done! What is your say? Any more believable that Axel knows, just doesn't want to except it?

Sometimes you gotta fit in to get in but don't ever quit ~ Geek in the Pink

Mr. A-Z

~xbuttonsx~