Things weren't as predictable as he thought they would be. But being unpredictable can have its good points too. Axel x Roxas
Ah…this is like the second part to 'First time for Everything' and I think it's recommended you read that one before this one…Ahahaha…
A gentle caress on his cheek slowly pulled him from the land of dreams. He didn't know what it was but it felt nice. For a moment, he felt completely at peace with the world.
Roxas slowly awoke again, and stared up at a plain, beige ceiling, in a room that wasn't his, in an apartment that he didn't own. The first thing that came to his mind was the soft, dull headache. Hardly a nuisance, but it was still undeniably there.
The next thing he noticed when he sniffed nonchalantly, was the smell of the room. The smell of something indescribable. The smell of cologne and something else. Mixed together in perfect harmony. It didn't smell too bad. Roxas had thought.
After that, he felt cold. And he remembered Axel. The red head who was no longer beside him to keep him warm.
He didn't know why, but as soon as he fully awoke from his slumber into the world of the living, he started to panic. He bolted up straight and stared at the door that was slightly ajar. The events of the night flooded back into his mind.
'Oh fuck.'
His heart pounded in his chest, his headache grew worse, and he could feel the pain in his lower region. Where his legs connected with the rest of his body.
What would the consequences be from his silly escapade last night? He really didn't want to think about it. But he'd have to face it sooner or later.
Or he could run off and hope that he wouldn't be noticed. Maybe when that guy's in the toilet or whatever.
'Is this what it feels like to ditch a one-night stand?' he thought bitterly as he sat up on the bed, weaved his fingers through his hair and pulled.
Wait…aren't you suppose to leave before the other person wakes up?
'This is so fucked!' he fought back a tiny sob. He really didn't want his first everything to turn out like this. He didn't plan for it to happen like this.
But it was too late and now he'd have to pay the penalty.
Sure he had fun and all, he had to admit, but that was when he was in the moment. Now though, was a completely different situation.
He was in the middle of swinging his legs over the bed when a noise that came from the outside of the room alerted him of another person's presence. Probably the red head.
Roxas bit his lower lip out of apprehension as he slowly set his feet down on the cold, hardwood floor. And when his lip started to hurt, he started to bite onto his finger.
He felt horribly out of place. He was in a stranger's home. In the stranger's bed. In the stranger's room!
'Holy shit.'
Another noise came from the outside, followed by a small string of curses.
'He's gonna murder me…' he gulped and imagined the red head coming in with a kitchen knife, smiling sinisterly and then stab him right in the heart and then maybe throw him off in a dump or maybe in a dark alley or maybe even on the outskirts of Hollow Bastion in an abandoned car left to rot and decompose away in the boot.
Darn his overactive imagination…
He never knew he stopped breathing until his lungs protested for air. He sucked in another breath and willed for his heart to calm down. But his nerves were being played and he started to bite his nails.
A bad habit he thought he lost when he started middle school. Unfortunately not.
He sat on the edge of the bed and chewed on his tortured fingernails. His mind started to play various scenes of what may happen to him if he ever stepped out of this room. His eyes wouldn't stay still and it kept on moving from one object to another.
The laptop on the guy's desk by the bed. The closet on the far end of the room opposite the door. The book case on the other wall parallel to the bed. The closed blinds to prevent too much sunlight from coming in. The small pile of dirty clothes in the laundry basket.
'Wait…Where are my clothes?!' his eyes traveled in the speed of light in search of his possessions.
His wallet was in his pocket, along with his mobile and house keys. Not to mention the keys to his beloved Toyota Integra.
But what would a car matter if you're dead?
Hypothetically, dead.
Just when he thought he was gonna get a heart attack from panicking so much, his eyes finally stopped at the swivel chair tucked under the desk. And on top of the chair, were his clothes. Neatly folded with his belongings placed on top of them.
He calmed down, 'That's nice of him…'
And then another thought occurred, 'Oh fuck. What if he looked through my stuffs? My cards? My ID? My cash?!' his hand zoomed out in front of him and he made a grab at his wallet.
He pulled it with a bit too much force and checked each slip and compartment and tried to remember how much cash he had with him.
'Five, ten…fifteen…' he looked through his card collection, 'Recharge card…bank card, ID card, driver's license…' he let out a relieved sigh.
Everything was still there.
Now…he suddenly felt stupid for doubting the red head.
But still…he hardly knew the guy to begin with.
He placed his wallet back down on top of his clothes. He didn't feel like changing into them just yet, for some unknown reason.
Right now, he preferred to just stay still, and think. He licked his dry lips, rested his elbows on his knees and weaved his fingers together to prevent himself from biting them again. His eyes focused on the spine of a particular book lined up neatly in the bookshelf.
'The Nightmare before Christmas.' His eyebrows lifted just slightly.
He took deep, even breaths. Did himself the favor of calming down his lungs and providing enough oxygen for his brain to contemplate and mull over his next moves. He went through various scenarios in his head, both good and bad.
They were both adults right? In his case, almost. But still, they were mature enough to work things through right?
Worst case scenario, the red head ignores him and Roxas leaves without a word of goodbye.
His heart suddenly wretched at that thought.
Wouldn't anything good come out of this? Last night had been his first everything. Surely…Axel wouldn't-
But he hardly knew the guy, there was no guarantee.
His head jerked when he heard something metallic drop on the floor and another string of curses.
He wondered what the red head was doing, or was trying to do.
A mental image of the red head wielding a chef's knife had emerged but slowly faded into the far reaches of his mind.
He'd have to deal with Axel sooner or later. Might as well be now and get it over and done with.
Roxas drew in a long breath and held it for a good ten seconds before he sighed and slowly got up from the bed to grab his clothes and change into them and slipped his things back into his pockets.
He walked towards the door, his sock covered feet padded carefully and quietly on the hardwood floor and he reached for the doorknob but his fingers hovered above the metal.
He forgot to breathe again and his lungs forced him to inhale deeply. His fingers slid over the cool metal of the door and he furrowed his eyebrows in worry. It took him a few moments more before he steeled his heart and grabbed the door to pull it open.
Green eyes suddenly met his sea of blue. Jade eyes looked mildly surprised while the blue orbs looked unsure of what to do or think.
The red head's face slowly turned into a smile and he held up a frying pan, "Hey, g'morning Roxy. Did I wake you?"
Roxas shook his head, his eyes widened just a fraction due to his surprise that his name was remembered and remained rooted to the spot by the door.
"Cool," a soft chuckle escaped his lips, "Ah well, it's actually the afternoon, but meh." He shrugged off the comment, "You hungry?"
Ah…so that's what all the noises were about. The pots and pans falling all over the kitchen floor.
"Um…" he didn't know how to answer, he didn't want to overstay…but at the same time, he felt as though he couldn't just leave.
"Come on, don't be shy. What do you feel like?" he offered as he set down the kitchen equipment on top of a stove and walked over towards the fridge, but just before he opened it, he turned back to the blond, "Actually."
Roxas froze just as he took one step closer to the red head and wondered if he was about to get kicked out.
"Do you want to take a shower first? If you want, the closet's just opposite the bathroom and the bathroom is just two steps away on your left." He pointed out as he stepped out of the kitchen and pointed to a half closed door.
"Oh." He certainly felt sort of icky, but he really didn't want to impose more than he already did. He felt embarrassed and the situation was more than just a little awkward. Although when he looked at the red head, he seemed as though he'd been doing this kind of thing for ages. Natural.
Roxas didn't quite know why he suddenly felt a small wave of jealously roll over him along with the anxiety and uneasiness.
And as though he sensed the blonds' discomfort, the red head immediately walked over to him, gently grabbed hold of one of the other's wrist and led him to the bathroom, "I'm sure you feel icky, do you want a change of clothes?" he offered as he stepped back, opened the closet door, and grabbed a random towel without letting his jade eyes leave those sapphire ones.
"No, no, that's fine." He felt flustered as he took the offered towel, "You don't-"
"I don't mind. Really." He smiled again as he entered his room and not half a minute later, he came back out with a clean set of clothes, "Here, you can use these for a while. We'll go to the laundry room downstairs later."
"I-Um…It's-You really didn't have to-I mean-" he stuttered as he accepted the clothes that were pushed into his arms. He sighed and spoke silently, "Thank you…"
There was another soft chuckle, "You're really cute, you know that?" he spoke with such a gentle smile, Roxas felt his heart skip a beat. And those green eyes were so sincere, completely different than what they looked like last night.
Roxas suddenly felt the burden and weight on his shoulders life and allowed him to fully relax in the other's presence.
"Alright, take a shower, I'll cook something for you." He spoke as he gave the blond a gentle push into the bathroom and closed the door for him with a wink.
The blond stared at the closed door and suddenly felt the room grow hotter and he stepped back and with his free hand, reached behind him for some support. His fingers met with a cool bench top.
He spent a good while staring at the door, his mind in a blissful mess.
Nothing he thought would happen, actually happened. In fact, they were completely opposite of what he had first predicted.
Instead of being kicked out, he was offered the choice of taking a shower. And instead of leaving, he was given the choice of joining the red head for breakfast, or lunch. Otherwise known as brunch.
He felt happy, and embarrassed and at the same time, a little anxious.
He wasn't going to get stabbed with a kitchen knife. He was going to get cooked something to eat.
Instead of being tossed in a dark alley, he was gently pushed into a bathroom to wash up.
And rather than being left to rot away in the boot of some unknown car, he was going to have brunch with the red head in the sunlit kitchen.
He couldn't help but smile a little whenever he heard something drop on the floor outside followed by some cursing.
Did Axel even know how to cook? He didn't know, but he wanted to stay and find out.
He shook his head and straightened himself out, placed the clothes on top of the bench, walked over to the bathroom stall, pulled the glass pane open, reached for the shower tap and adjusted it so that warm water would sprout.
Not ten minutes later, he was out, feeling clean from head to toe and wearing a simple change of clothes that the red head had given him as a substitute.
He came out of the bathroom with the towel hung from his neck and his bundle of clothes in his hands while his belongings were left in the pockets of the current trousers that he wore.
Roxas stopped when he noticed that the red head was still rummaging around his cupboards for something to eat. He smiled as he walked closer and placed his clothes on one of the stools in the living room side of the apartment, "Need some help?" he asked with a smile on the face. His smile widened further when the red head let out a small noise of surprise when he turned his head to see him.
"Ah well…I didn't know what to cook…for you…" he reasoned with a slight mumble as he scratched his cheek and strayed his eyes back into the cupboard where an opened packet of flour stared innocently at him.
The blond laughed as he stood on his tip-toes and looked into the cupboard. He noticed a small container of sugar, and a small waffle machine, "Do you want to make waffles?"
"Um…I would…But I don't know how." He reasoned again and looked mildly embarrassed. "I was going to cook…bacon and eggs…but there's no bacon."
Roxas laughed without an air of awkwardness he thought he would feel, "You've got a waffle iron," he pointed out, "Waffles are almost the same as pancakes." He didn't know why he was being so natural around the red head. All his anxiety flew out the window when he saw Axel let his guard down.
He decided to return the favor and let his safety barriers down as well.
"Waffles are good." The red head smiled as he reached up, pulled out the bag of flour along with the waffle machine and set it down on the bench.
They spent ten minutes together in the kitchen, putting spoonfuls of flour and sugar into a big bowl along with a pinch of salt, some baking flour and sugar, a couple of eggs and milk before mixing it all together to form a batter.
It took them another enjoyable ten minutes to get a stack of waffles onto two plates, each with a good serving of maple syrup drizzled on top.
Roxas didn't know why, but he warmed up to the red head very quickly. It seemed almost natural for them to be this way.
"So…" the red head brought up quite suddenly and Roxas stopped mid way of lifting a piece of maple covered waffle up to his mouth, "When's our next date?"
The blond couldn't stop the smile from spreading over his face as he brought the waffle up the rest of the way, "Doesn't this count as one?" he ate the waffle and pointed the fork at Axel.
The one who gently woke him up with a soft kiss on the cheek.
To be completely honest, I hadn't been planning this second part to come out. But it just sort of happened. Not that you're complaining right? Lols!