Good Question: Updated/Revision started Feb. 12th 2010.

Thanks so much for the reviews guys. 3 Here's another chapter.

Chapter 2: Equipment and Milk

"AXEL! Pedestrian!"

Roxas screamed and clung to his seatbelt, his knees tucked against his chest, his body quivering.

"Breaks are for quitters!" Axel replied swerving to avoid the mother and her stroller.

"RED LIGHT! RED LIGHT!" Roxas screeched.

Axel chuckled and floored the gas. The small pink bug flashed through the intersection leaving a small trail of exhaust in its wake. With a 'woot' of joy, Axel did a donut in the empty parking lot across from Mickey's Macs and then abruptly halted the car in a parking place. Roxas flew forward in his seat, his head banging against the dashboard and his neck burning from the friction that the seatbelt had caused against it. Roxas whimpered as he drew back into the torn up seat. He turned accusatory eyes to the red head next to him.

"Come on Roxy, live a little," Axel commented with an offhand wave of his hand as he unbuckled his seatbelt, he didn't seem offended by the glare.

For the 12th time during their drive Roxas wondered just what he had been thinking getting into the car with a complete stranger. Yes, a hot stranger, but a stranger nonetheless. He thought he remembered there being programs against this type of thing in his youth.

"I always go for the crazy ones," Roxas mumbled as he got out of the bug.

"Did you say something Roxy?" Axel asked from the other side of the car.

"No." Roxas replied. "Why Roxy anyway?"

"'Cause it's cute. And you've got the eyes of a supah-stah. Now hurry up, Mickey's is pretty popular so the sooner we get there the better," Axel said with a grin that made Roxas do mental back flips into Sunday with a tissue in his hand.

With a sigh of defeat, Roxas followed Axel across the street.

Axel had been right when he said that the place was pretty popular. At first glance Roxas guessed that the entire population of Destiny Island couldn't measure up to the number of people crammed into the joint. While Roxas had been busy staring at the people, Axel moved on through the crowd leaving Roxas to fend for himself.

"Well, well, well. Look who we have here."

Roxas turned around when he felt hot air on his neck.

Pink. A mass of pink. A wispy mass of pink. On a body.

"Uhm-,"

"Your new aren't you? You have to be. I would've remembered someone this cute."

The man reached out a hand and wrapped it around Roxas' waist, pulling him closer. "What's your name?" he asked, his lips brushing over Roxas' ear. A rosy smell invaded Roxas' nose.

Before Roxas had the chance to drop kick his molester the man was pulled away from him harshly, nearly sending Roxas tumbling after.

"Marluxia! Stop molesting little boys!"

Roxas looked up to his savior. It was a woman with radiant blond hair and sharp eyes. She currently had her hand curled firmly around a chunk of Marluxia's hair and was keeping him place.

"Sorry about that sweetheart," she said with the sweetheart sounding slightly cold.

"Ah… uhm. Thank you," he said steadying himself and taking a better look at the feminine man that the woman was holding in place.

"Roxas! Roxas! Where are- There you are," Axel ran up behind Roxas and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Oh. Larxene, what are you two doing here?" he asked noticing Roxas' two companions.

"Saving him from getting ass raped by Mr. Rose Cologne," Larxene replied finally letting go of Marluxia's hair.

"Oh okay. Wanna join us? Or are you two leaving?" Axel asked as he began to tug Roxas towards a table he had secured for them.

"We'd be happy to!" Larxene replied pushing Marluxia in front of her, Roxas sending glares at Axel's back. This was not good.

Roxas shuddered as he sped up his step to match Axel's. Roxas apparently did not posses super powers, as he had briefly hoped, because Axel hadn't caught on to his mental screams of horror at having to share a table with his molester. His heart beat quickened as he saw Axel stop at a table. They would have to sit down. Together. All of them.

"So, who are you kid?" Larxene asked with a smirk, sliding in across from Roxas. Marluxia slid in next to her, his eyes fixed Roxas.

"I'm Roxas Flabanooski." (1)

Larxene grinned and nodded. "Axel, be a dear and fetch us something to eat while we introduce ourselves."

Axel opened his mouth to protest, but Larxene's cold glare firmly drowned whatever protest he had attempted to make. He turned to Roxas and gave him an apologetic smile before disappearing into the crowd.

He would just have to fend for himself.

"Now Roxas. I think we need to properly introduce ourselves," Larxene said as she fiddled with a salt shaker. "I'm Larxene, and this is Marluxia."

Roxas nodded and kept a weary eye on Marluxia. 'You can't get AIDS from touching right?' he thought as he scooted back further in his seat to distance himself further from Marluxia.

"Don't be such a baby, Roxy. Marluxia's relatively harmless," Larxene smirked and scooted out of the seat, slipping past Marluxia. "I think Axel needs help carrying things."

"It's Roxas," Roxas mumbled sourly to himself as he watched Larxene go.

"So…."

Roxas glanced up at Marluxia. 'Oh… yeah…' He crossed his legs and stared back at Marluxia.

"Roxas. Where'd you move from? How long have you been here? Gay right? Available?"

It was a pity Roxas had a habit of being polite to strangers because otherwise he would've flipped the table and screamed 'Rape!' before running away. "Destiny Island. Almost a week. And I don't think I can share that information with you."

Marluxia chuckled and crossed his arms. He was enjoying this way too much.

"You're obviously gay. Either that or you naturally radiate 'I like bottoming'. Not that it has anything to do with you being obviously gay or anything. You're really cute Roxy-baby. You've got a nice figure on ya and a nice curved ass."

Roxas swallowed nervously as he lifted his arms to cover his chest, not liking the way Marluxia was eyeing him. He was too preoccupied with protecting his virtue that he didn't even bother to wonder how everyone he met just naturally assumed he was gay. It wasn't as if he had a man purse or anything.

"Marly! Carrying! Now!" Larxene shouted from the counter.

For a second Marluxia looked as if he was going to ignore her, but only for a second.

Nobody crossed Larxene; if they wanted to have functioning genitals. Roxas let out the breath he had been holding and let himself relax in his seat. A hand touched his shoulder and Roxas sprang out of his seat, his knees colliding with the table and sending him whimpering back into his spot.

"Woah! Roxy! Sorry, are you okay?" Axel asked as he circled around next to Roxas, genuinely worried.

Roxas flinched and turned to face Axel with a wry smile. "Don't do that."

Axel muttered a few more apologies before Roxas got tired of it. "Seriously. I'm fine. Just a bit jumpy."

"Marluxia?" Axel asked as he glanced to see what progress Larxene and Marluxia had made with their food. They hadn't gotten very far.

"The molester."

"Actually a pedophile. You are 15 right?" Axel asked as he lounged back in his chair.

"…. How old is Marluxia?" Roxas asked instead. He decided not to answer Axel's question. He knew he looked a bit young but he was turning 17 in January.

"He turned 22 a month ago. Don't worry, you'll get used to him. He's a little odd but a reliable friend," Axel said in a tone that indicated the end of discussion.

'I don't want to get used to him!' was what Roxas had wanted to scream but it sounded as if Axel was already deciding that he was one of his friends and therefore should get to know his other friends. It wasn't as if it was a confession of love but it was a step-up and that made Roxas happy.

"Food has arrived!" Larxene exclaimed, dropping the tray on the table.

Axel drummed a song on his steering wheel as he drove down his street, his red hair flapping in the wind coming in from the open window.

The day had gone pretty well in his opinion.

A successful adventure. For the most part.

Roxas had been less than happy about their fast food companions. Which was a shame seeing as Roxas was a pretty cool person to be around, or those were his predictions, and he was rarely wrong.

"Axel…"

…

"Axel…"

"Axel!" Roxas hissed kicking him under the table.

Axel snorted into his Dr. Diz and bit his lip to keep from smiling. He turned around to face Roxas with the calmest smile he could muster. It was a hard thing to do.

"Yes Roxas?"

Roxas' eyes shifted from Axel to Marluxia who was staring at Roxas over his 10 piece chicken nugget box like he was a chicken nugget, a very sexy chicken nugget.

"He's touching meeeee," Roxas whispered, covering his lips with his hands, just in case Marluxia could read lips.

"Who?"

Axel almost lost it as Roxas' expression changed from flustered to forlorn. It wasn't that he wanted to torture his new friend but Roxas was adorable when he was out of his comfort zone. It was a hobby of his that he could indulge in like a kid in a candy factory with Roxas.

"You know wh-"

Roxas squealed and sprang out of his seat, sending his fries flying over the table. Axel broke out laughing as he watched Roxas cover his crotch with his hands. He glanced under the table and watched Marluxia's hands retreat back over to their side of the table.

"I wanna go home." Axel was about to protest but the sharp look in Roxas' eyes told him he should swallow whatever protest he had. Damn.

"All right," Axel said raising his hands in defeat. "See ya later Marly, Larxene."

Roxas sighed in relief as he walked ahead of Axel back to the car. "You're a bad man."

Axel grinned and ruffled Roxas' hair as he swung himself into the driver's seat of his car. "I am a bad man."

"It's a shame he's not a girl," Axel commented to his reflection in the rear-view mirror. He could almost imagine him with a pair of nice knockers and a skirt. He wasn't sure what had possessed him to ask the new kid to join him for lunch. He supposed it was because he had been new once too and remember how his seniors had given him a leg up into the new world. Besides, if Zexion and Demyx liked him then that was a nice voice of confidence. It had been a lunch time accident that had truly brought Roxas to his attention.

'The milk is really delicious today, such strong chocolate flavors that glide smoothly down my throat'.

Axel was completely enveloped in his chocolate milk. The school had changed to a different provider and to his luck, they put their milk into those nifty cardboard containers, or plastic cardboard containers.

Either way, it was a good thing for him, and it made him happy.

And then he watched his happiness fly out of his hand, making a delicate arch, spilling milk as it somersaulted in the air. He reached out a hand to try and desperately save some of it.

Instead, he watched it land in the lap of a boy.

"SHI-"

Axel passed his house twice before finally remembering to stop. He parked in their driveway, assuming his parents would stay overnight at the office. The annual independence celebration was coming up and his parents had more on their hands than ever. Axel slid out of his car and waltzed down the driveway, whistling 'Where's your head at?' as he went.

Before he even had a chance to touch the door knob the door flew open. Axel flinched and tried to take on a defensive position, his arms flailing, as a blur of a person tackled him to the ground.

"Welcome home Axel!" the blob on his chest exclaimed.

"Thanks Kairi," he said weakly, trying to breathe. He stared at the little girl on his chest and gave her hair a light ruffle. "Next time without the running tackle okay?"

"It's a glomp. Don't you know anything about pop culture?" the little girl asked with a 'know-it-all' stare. She was such a fucking brat.

Axel rolled his eyes, 'So much for sweet', and gently pushed Kairi off of his chest.

"Where were you?" Kairi asked as she watched her brother get up.

"With a friend, friends," Axel explained before taking Kairi's hand into his own.

"But I was hungry!"

"Don't they feed you in Elementary school? 'Cause if they don't we're wasting money on your education. We could just send you to work. They'd feed you there for sure," Axel asked as he led her inside.

"Lunch was two hours ago!"

"Speaking of which. Reno should be... was home. Why didn't he cook?" Axel asked as he dumped his things on the kitchen counter. Reno wasn't in his only, and usual spot on the couch, lounging about in his boxers.

"Because he doesn't cook good," Kairi explained as she lifted herself into the wooden chair at the end of the kitchen table.

"Of course he doesn't. He's a college student. What should we eat? We have to save some for Namine too," Axel said as he began to open cabinets.

"OH! Nami called and she said, she said, she was eating with a friends house," Kairi said, nodding her head vigorously to emphasize her point. Sometimes he wondered if she would make a good bobbly ornament one day.

"At a friends house," Axel corrected as he pulled out a frozen, ready made lasagna.

This was a usual occurrence in the household. Reno, although clumsy and slightly ... odd, was a hard worker when it came to something he liked and a while back he had helped out a friend keep their bar in business. He had enjoyed the work and now bartended and worked as a part-time bouncer with Rude, much of his time was devoted to the bar, their parents worried that he'd drop out of college but he assured them he had it covered.

Axel's parents were both successful and made a healthy amount of money.

Axel's mother worked as a manager for the children's and infants section of Twilight Fashions and Fad's (one of the most prominent companies in the country.) His father worked as an architect.

Kairi was the youngest sister, only in second grade. Namine was the second youngest and was currently in the 5th grade.

Because Axel's family was often busy and away he was left to take care of his younger siblings. Thankfully Namine was a much calmer and sensible person than Kairi was. Not that he loved Kairi any less.

"How long have you been alone? Reno should know better than to ditch you until I get home when mom and dad are gone," Axel asked as he set the temperature on the oven.

"Mom and dad leave me alone all the time!" Kairi cried, crossing her arms.

"No they don't. You just don't notice them watching," Axel said as he shoved the box into the oven.

"Hmph. You act as if I'm not mature enough to handle myse- OH! Axel! I drew something for you!" Kairi exclaimed as she ran out of the kitchen.

"I worry about her, she is not going to like the real world" Axel muttered to himself as he began to clean plates to use.

At the same time in Roxas's household the boy's aunt was questioning him. "Soo, how was your day?" Tina asked as she leaned over the couch to see Roxas staggering towards her through the hallway.

"I don't want butt babies."

Tina stared at Roxas before getting up and walking over to him. She placed a hand on her forehead and the other on Roxas' forehead. "No fever..."

"Don't make fun of me! I was violated!" Roxas exclaimed, swatting his aunt's hand away and clutching his crotch.

Tina gave a pout and pulled Roxas over to the couch. "Aaaw. My poor pooky, wooky, baby-kins, sugar cupcake, strawberry cheek, baby. Tell aunt Tina what happened."

Ignoring the nicknames he collapsed onto the couch and began his story, exaggerated hand movements and all.

By the end of his story, Tina was in tears.

"It's not funny!"

Tina giggled and manicured nails clutching her stomach. "Oh... oh... my stomach. If I was pregnant I would've blamed you for squishing my baby to death. Can't take it... anymore…Well... I wish you two happiness in the future. I have work to do," she said as she stood up, dusting off her suit.

"But I don't want butt babies!" Roxas cried out as he watched her leave.

He felt rather irritated that his aunt found his predicament amusing.

Grumbling about abusive aunts, and too gay to be gay men, Roxas made his way to the kitchen, stopping as he went to grab a fortune cookie out of a bowl on the kitchen counter. He pushed the cookie out of the wrapping and smashed the cookie against the table in irritation. He brushed cookie bits into his palm and tossed them into his mouth. He glanced at his fortune and crumpled it up.

"You have an unusual equipment

for success, use it properly. "

Axel had finished feeding Kairi and was finally allowed to hide in the refuge of his room. It was decorated with trophies of his physical prowess. Medals, certificates. There was even a pending full-paid scholarship in the works for him if he did well his senior year, and it hadn't gotten off to a bad start. Everything else in his room was a little plain, he didn't really get time to decorate that often. And he had nothing to decorate the room with. He tossed his shirt off and meandered towards his bed, pivoting and spreading himself across the bed. His mind drifted back to Roxas, now that boy, was an interesting find.

Axel could feel an anger boiling towards him, coiling towards him like a great snake, and then changing and washing over him in a simple heat. He stared at the package that was staring up at him, somewhat emptily. He was in shock of course, the uniforms weren't cheap. He cursed silently and started apologizing, grabbing napkins and trying to pat the other boy dry.

He felt him tense as he lowered his hands to wipe off the milk and pulled back. He had offended him. It wasn't like himself to be this clumsy, maybe he really needed that extra 30 minutes of sleep, but warm showers were oh so good.

"Ah-, It's. It's okay."

Axel rubbed the back of his head, feeling awkward. "No, really. I'm sorry. I should've been paying attention. Let me make it up to you- uh?"

"Roxas."

"Roxas! Yeah, how about I treat you to lunch or something."

Roxas fell silent for a second and he feared that he had messed up again. Axel really didn't like causing trouble, especially ones that caused a significant amount of pants. He would never be able to get those stains out.

"Yeah. Of course. I mean sure, I guess. See you around?"

He sounded more confident. Good. Smooth.

"All right, I'll see you Roxy! I'll find you after classes, I'm hard to miss."