Summary: "Can't you just be there for the family for once?" Alternative Universe, College setting. Oh, and it's slash. Don't like? I suggest you don't read it. Kthx.
Pairing: AkuRoku, because that's what was wished for!
Warning: Wait... (scans page)... Nope, none.
Disclaimer: Neither Axel, Roxas, Reno, Ariel, or any other Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy or Disney character does belong to me. Obviously.
Dedication: For my lovely muse, kotilo – This was supposed to be a birthday present, but of course it wasn't even nearly finished for her birthday. Knowing me, it might not even be finished until the next one… I hope you still enjoy it, love!
As hard as Axel tried to ban every thought about Roxas from his mind and concentrate on his studies, he was reminded of Roxas all the time. Angry blue eyes haunted him until the words and pictures in the textbook blurred in front of his weary eyes. He was exhausted from taking care of Reno all day, and he hadn't gotten enough sleep last night; he dozed off more than once, until he couldn't fight sleep any longer. He was asleep before his head touched the fabric of the couch, the notebook sliding from his limp hands and falling to the floor.
Family Bonds – Chapter 6
"Axey Axey Axey Axey Axey Axey Axey Axey Axey!"
A high-pitched voice along with two small hands shaking his arm startled Axel out of his sleep. He jumped, still half-asleep, and barely noticed his glasses sliding off his nose. He blinked and looked around rather confused. That was not his bedroom, right…?
"Oh, you silly! Don't dwop youw glasses!" Reno cried and bent down to pick them up. He tried to slide them back onto Axel's nose for a moment, a look of pure concentration on his small face. But he quickly gave up and held them out for Axel to take instead, beaming at his uncle merrily.
Axel sat up slowly and let the hand he had raised only halfway to fend off Reno's 'help' drop to his lap. His thoughts were still somewhat hazy, and he couldn't stop blinking owlishly. And it wasn't even sunny outside or anything… Wait. It hadn't even dawned yet!
"Why are you awake?" he muttered, hiding a yawn behind one hand while taking his glasses from the grinning boy in front of him. He stared at the tiny fingerprints on the formerly spotless glass for a moment, then laid them aside. He sighed softly.
"'Cos I'm not sleepy anymore!" Reno answered way too enthusiastically for the other, definitely still sleepy redhead.
"Go back to sleep, Reno," Axel groaned, rubbing his weary eyes.
"But I wanna plaaaaaaaaay," the child whined, again grabbing Axel's arm to shake it. "Play wiv meeeeeeeeeeeee!"
'Oh, hell no!' Axel thought and groaned again. He held his head in both hands, yawning again.
"But I'm still tired, Reno," he tried to protest. "Why don't you try to go to sleep again?"
"But youw a grown-up," Reno stated matter-of-factly. "You don't need so much sleep."
"Reno…" Axel sighed, but the boy didn't listen. Instead he started to jump around the couch, continuously yelling "Play wiv meeee!", and occasionally pulling at Axel's clothes, until Axel grabbed him to sit the child on his lap. Reno giggled, snuggling close to Axel.
"Fine," Axel growled, smirking when Reno let out a shrill giggle as Axel's fingers danced down his side. "But you have to be quiet until Uncle Axel has had his coffee, alright?"
"Al-… Alwiiiiiiiight!" Reno agreed, squirming in Axel's grip. He shrieked again when Axel rose from his seat, throwing his thin arms around Axel's neck. "Sowwee," he whispered, laying a finger over his lips. "I'm quiet now."
"That's my Squirt," Axel said smiling. "Hot chocolate for you?"
Reno nodded, but stayed quiet. He had his fingers in his mouth, but his eyes were sparkling at the mentioning of sweet, unhealthy breakfast stuff. Axel laughed and ruffled Reno's bright hair while holding him securely with the other hand.
"I love you, Reno," Axel whispered, smiling at the child in his arms fondly. "You know that, right?"
Reno grinned, but kept his fingers in his mouth. He just nodded enthusiastically. Axel laughed again.
He didn't laugh for very long though. Just like he had thought, Reno didn't leave him any time to study. After a quick shower Axel had tried to make Reno watch TV, but Reno soon grew bored with the program. He tried to learn while Reno did a puzzle, but was chastised for not concentrating on the puzzle. He tried to make Reno draw, but Reno insisted his uncle had to draw with him.
Slowly but surely Axel started to panic. It was an important exam he would have to take the next day, and he couldn't miss it. Maybe he could talk to his teacher and try to move it, but…
"You'we not listening!" Reno wailed and startled Axel out of his thoughts. Axel groaned and let his head fall onto the table.
"Reno, why can't you just play alone for one or two hours?" he sighed exasperatedly, immediately regretting it when Reno's eyes started to water.
"You… you don't want to play wiv me at all," Reno said meekly, and immediately added louder, "You don't like me anymore!"
"I didn't say that," Axel tried to limit the damage, but it was too late. Reno started to cry and kept accusing Axel he was mean, and he didn't listen to anything Axel had to say. He started to hit Axel, threw pencils and notebooks at him and refused to calm down, not even when Axel promised him ice cream.
Axel tried his best not to freak out on the kid – It wasn't Reno's fault he was busy. The boy's mother was to blame, and all of her incompetent staff. For the love of God, they had six sisters! Four of them had kids of their own, and all of them adored Reno. So why did she have to bring… let him be brought to Axel's place, and without even asking him first?
And just when Axel thought he couldn't take it any longer and opened his mouth to yell at still raging Reno, the doorbell rang.
Axel froze; he stared at Reno, who had stopped crying to look to the door instead. Axel felt all of his strength leaving his body at once. He raised trembling hands to cover his mouth.
Had he really just thought of yelling? At Reno?
He was a horrible, horrible person. How could he even think that? He loved the child, and his bad mood wasn't Reno's fault. He knew better than yelling at a three-year-old, who wouldn't understand why he was being yelled at anyway. Oh, how could he…
"Who's that?" Reno asked curiously, all anger at his uncle seemingly forgotten. Axel was unable to move or to talk at first, still shocked about his own behavior. But then Axel rose from his seat and hurried out of the living room to answer the door.
He kept looking back while he opened the door, already expecting to hear Reno starting to cry again. He didn't even look at his visitor when he opened the door. He knew who it was; it had to be his sister, or at least one of her lackeys, who came to pick up Reno. Nobody else knew where he lived… Well, those who did know wouldn't care about it anyway.
"What?" he growled irritated, still glancing at the door to the living room. Okay, so far everything seemed calm… "You're damn late, you idiot!"
"Nice," the other person in the hallway replied. "I'm starting to understand why everybody thinks you're an asshole."
Wait, that wasn't…
Axel froze, and finally he managed to take a look at his visitor. Blond, blue eyes, pretty small for his age. And smiling. That smile was what startled Axel most.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" he blurted out, scowling when Roxas started to laugh. No, that was not the reaction he had expected… Let's see… He had run away after spending the night with Roxas without explaining anything, right? So why was he here?
"I'm bringing you lunch," Roxas replied grinning, raising the paper bag he was holding in his left hand. Oh, and there was another one in his right hand. "You said you had to study a lot. And if I had to guess, I'd say you are the type to forget about eating at all while learning. Am I right?"
"What?" Axel asked and blinked, still trying to grasp the reason why in God's name Roxas was standing on his fucking doorstep! "No! What? Why the fuck are you here?"
"Lunch," Roxas repeated slowly, talking as if he was explaining something to a child. "Stuff to eat. See? I…" He pointed at himself, then at Axel. "…bring you…" And then he raised the bags in his hands again, shaking them in front of Axel's face. "…stuff to eat." He smirked, eyeing Axel up briefly. "You're thin enough as it is. Do you eat at all? Other than Kairi's chocolate cake, that is."
"I'm not that…" Axel started, but then he shook his head forcefully. Dammit! Of all times Roxas could have decided to show up in front of his apartment, it had to be now! "Listen, it's just… You're coming at an inconvenient time right now…" Oh yes! Inconvenient! What with a three-year-old sitting in his living room and all… Axel hoped Reno would be good for once and stay where he was.
"Is that so?" Roxas asked quietly, even the last trace of a smile vanishing from his face. He stretched to look over Axel's shoulder, warily inspecting the hallway. "Are you having a visitor already?"
Axel didn't like Roxas' sudden change in demeanor. Oh, he knew what Roxas was thinking, but how should he explain the situation? How should he tell Roxas it wasn't like he was thinking, but…
"You look like U'chin," a small voice next to Axel piped up, and Axel felt his heart sink. Oh, great.
Roxas seemed quite surprised. Not that Axel could blame him. Roxas stared at a point right next to Axel's knee, his eyes widening almost comically. Axel sighed and closed his eyes.
"Axey, Axey," Reno squeaked and reached up to pull at Axel's pants. "Who's that? He looks like U'chin!"
"He does not look like Urchin, Reno," Axel answered tiredly, glancing down at the boy next to him. Reno was eyeing the stranger in front of him warily, but soon nodded and pulled at Axel's pant leg once more.
"Yes he does!" the boy exclaimed and pointed at Roxas. "See? Yellow hair! He looks like U'chin!"
"And who's that?" Roxas asked, staring down at Reno wide-eyed.
"U'chin was Mommy's boyfriend, but now he's not anymore," Reno explained merrily, smiling broadly. "U'chin always played wiv me!"
"His name is Reno," Axel answered Roxas' question correctly, ruffling Reno's hair. He earned a startled squeak for that, and to his own surprise he managed a weak smile. "He's my 'visitor'."
"Oh," Roxas said equally quiet.
"Do you wanna play wiv me too?" Reno asked excitedly, but his smile turned into a pout when he noticed none of the grown-ups were paying attention to him.
"He's your…" Roxas repeated shakily, quickly stopping himself. He shook his head lightly, quickly putting on a neutral face. "I see," he added solemnly, taking a small step back and looking down at the floor. "I'm sorry I bothered you, I didn't know…" He looked down at Reno once more, then his eyes found Axel's again. He seemed unsure now; Axel had rarely seen him like this before.
"How could you not mention you had a son in any of our conversations before?" Roxas asked quietly, and Axel felt his jaw drop.
What?
Roxas tilted his head to the side when he noticed Axel's suddenly baffled expression. Axel couldn't believe what he had just heard; he wasn't able to talk or think as well for a moment, or so it seemed. That couldn't be true. How the hell had Roxas gotten that idea? Son? What, his son? Reno? But before he could correct Roxas' remark…
"Axey?" Reno laughed, shaking his head wildly. "He's not my Daddy! He's my uncle!"
"Is he?" Roxas replied weakly while Axel groaned and hid his eyes in his hand.
"Yo," Reno explained enthusiastically. "Do you know what that means? Mommy explained it to me. That means Uncle Axey is Mommy's bwother. And he's older than she…"
"Older than her," Axel corrected him absently.
"Mommy is famous," Reno continued gleefully, completely ignoring his uncle. "Do you know her? She sings pwetty songs…"
"I… I don't know," Roxas answered confused. "What's her name?"
"Ariel," Reno replied. "Do you know her? She's famous," he added once more, smiling proudly.
"Ari-…" Roxas started, but stopped again. He slowly looked up to Axel. "Kaji. Your… your last name is Kaji. Like in Ariel Kaji?" His voice grew higher with every word. "The famous singer from Atlantica? Ariel Kaji is your… your sister?"
Oh, how often had he heard those words already? Axel knew how this would continue; Roxas would either not get over the fact Axel's sister was famous and wouldn't want to see him again – or he would only want to be friends with Axel to get a chance to meet Ariel. Axel didn't like either of those options.
"Thanks for bringing me lunch," Axel muttered, refusing to look at Roxas anymore. He looked down, stepped back and pulled Reno with him. Reno looked up to him with big, questioning eyes. "I'm sorry for wasting your time." And he outstretched his hand to close the door.
He never got a chance to actually close it though.
"What are you talking about?" Roxas suddenly exclaimed, slamming his flat hand against the door and shoving it open so harshly it banged against the wall. Reno shrieked loudly, but then started to giggle, and Axel, too, couldn't help a small gasp that escaped him when he felt the door miss his face and his outstretched hand just by a hair. He didn't feel like laughing though. Instead he slowly turned his head to stare at the door. Holy crap. That would have ripped his nose right out of his face…
"What did I do now?" Roxas demanded and scowled at Axel, still holding the door open. "Heavens, I just asked you if Ariel Kaji was your sister. And shutting the door in my face is no way to answer my question, you know?"
Axel blinked, still gaping at the door.
"I see." Roxas rolled his eyes. But suddenly the annoyed look on his face turned into a sweet smile, and he leaned down to grin at Reno, who happily returned his smile. "Hi," Roxas said. "Your name is Reno, right?"
"Yo," Reno answered cheerfully.
"I'm Roxas," Roxas continued, smiling again when the little boy suddenly stretched out a small hand to him. Roxas took Reno's hand and shook it gently.
"Nice to meet you, Woks… Woksas," Reno said politely. Axel, who had slowly managed to relax after nearly getting smashed by the door, now turned to stare down at his nephew unbelievingly. Since when did Reno act so well-behaved around strangers? And he had nearly gotten Roxas' name right…
"Wow, that was great," Roxas complimented Reno, and the boy beamed at the praise. "You know, I don't know many kids your age who get my name right."
"But I am smawt!" Reno stated proudly and grinned up to Axel adoringly. "I wanna be as smawt as Axey when I'm grown-up."
"I bet you'll be even smarter." Roxas nodded firmly and smiled a bit wider when Reno giggled happily. "Sooo, Reno… Ariel Kaji is your Mommy?"
"Yo!" the child replied. And just to make sure Roxas got that fact, he added, "She's famous."
"Oh, that she is," Roxas agreed and glanced up to Axel, who slowly managed to get over the fact that Reno was being polite. "But that's so hard to believe, because your Mommy is so sweet and your uncle is pretty rude…"
"He's not!" Reno protested. "He's the nicest uncle in the world!"
"But don't you think it's rude to close the door in the middle of a conversation?" Roxas asked, now looking at the boy again.
"A what?" Reno asked, scratching his head cutely.
"Sorry," Roxas said, coughing softly to hide a grin. It seemed like he had just remembered he was talking to a child. "I mean: In the middle of our talk."
"But you said something else!" Reno insisted. "Cov… con… confi…"
"Conversation," Roxas said and nodded. "But that's too big of a word for a small guy like you."
"'m not small," Reno replied, holding up three fingers. "I'm thwee!"
"Wow, you don't say? I take everything back," Roxas said, barely restraining laughter.
"Do you wanna play wiv me now?" Reno asked again, looking up to Roxas with big, hopeful eyes. "Axey isn't good at playing today…"
"I'll have to ask Axel first, okay?" Roxas replied patiently, again glancing up to Axel. "Why don't you go inside already?"
"Oooooooh," Reno said and nodded wisely, "you gonna have a grown-up-talk, wight?" And without waiting for an answer he turned around and dashed back to the living room.
"I guess…" Roxas sighed and straightened up again. Axel was surprised to find the blond still smiling, although it was not as amused as before.
After a moment of silence, during which Roxas just seemed to stare at Axel expectantly, Axel nervously cleared his throat and looked down to the floor.
"So… Why are you here?" he asked and winced when he heard Roxas snicker almost inaudibly.
"Lunch," Roxas stated for the… third or fourth time, Axel didn't quite remember. "I just wanted… to bring you… lunch."
"Right, right," Axel muttered, and suddenly he felt like an idiot. Again there was an awkward moment of silence between them.
"Axel Kaji," Roxas finally broke the silence, and from the sound of his voice Axel could tell the blond was smiling. He couldn't be sure though, as looking up would surely kill him out of pure embarrassment. Strange enough, he was surprised to find that he liked how his name sounded coming from Roxas' mouth. "It must be pretty interesting to have such a famous sister."
"Hn," Axel grunted, and he was telling himself he was not feeling disappointed. He couldn't possibly have kept it from the world forever, right? But he hated what he knew would come next. Now Roxas would either state that he was Ariel's biggest fan, or he would ask Axel if she really was as rich as…
"You know, I never liked her music," Roxas stated nonchalantly, and winked at Axel when he suddenly looked up to gawk at the younger man. "But don't tell that the little guy in there."
"What?" Axel managed to breathe somehow. He couldn't believe it; wasn't Roxas interested in his famous little sister at all?
"Well, it may surprise you, but I'm not interested in your famous little sister at all," Roxas added and thusly convinced Axel that he had been reading his mind all along. "Your cute little nephew there on the other hand seems very interesting."
Axel had to stare at him again for a moment, then he registered what Roxas had just said. And interpreted it the completely wrong way.
"Pervert," he said monotonously, and instantly got hit in the face by a bag full of food. He managed to catch it before it fell to the floor, and again he wanted to die out of shame when he spotted the amused grin on Roxas' lips. Why had he said that? It seemed like his brain had gone on vacation since he had opened this damned door.
"Well, three years is a little bit too young for me," Roxas scoffed. "I like my molestation victims a bit older than that. About twenty years older, I'd say."
"I'm sorry, I just…" Axel groaned, but he was quickly silenced when Roxas shoved the second bag into his arms.
"You're lucky that I bought enough food for at least four persons," Roxas said cheerfully while he rushed past Axel. He didn't seem to intend to give Axel a chance to stop him from entering his apartment. The younger man just kicked off his shoes and shrugged off his jacket, acting as if he had been living here for years. Axel was way too surprised to protest.
"Say, didn't you have to study for an exam or something?" Roxas asked while he took the two bags from Axel's stiff hands again. "I can look after Reno for a while if you want."
"But I…" Axel muttered, still standing at the door and looking after Roxas helplessly.
"It's no problem, really," Roxas interrupted him and shrugged. He was already at the door to Axel's living room. "I have nothing important to do today." He grinned at Axel. "And I hear you're not good at playing today anyway…"
Again there was silence, until a wave of relief and gratitude hit Axel full force as Roxas' words finally settled in his mind. He stayed completely serious and calm when he followed Roxas and fell to his knees in front of the surprised blond.
"Marry me," he said earnestly, not even smiling when Roxas stared at him wide-eyed. Yes, he had probably gone insane. He didn't mind right now. He was just so grateful that Roxas offered him a chance to at least pass his exam…
"Yeah, well… No," Roxas finally replied and smiled while patting Axel's head. "Not until you've got your master's degree, sweetheart."
"Sounds fair enough," Axel agreed and rose to his feet again, smiling softly. Suddenly it was so easy to smile… "Thank you."
"No problem. Just…" Roxas threw him a skeptical look. "Don't ever do that again. It's creepy beyond words."
"That… also sounds fair," Axel said and nodded, grinning sheepishly.
"What does 'sweetheart' mean?" a small voice asked, interested, and the grown-ups turned around to find three-year-old Reno smiling at them innocently.
Axel could feel his ears grow hot, and when he glanced at Roxas he could see his cheeks taking on a rosy hue. Now that… would be complicated to explain.
But there was an easy way out of it.
"Well, Reno, Roxas here will explain that to you," he exclaimed cheerfully, quickly making his way to the small room he used as a home office. He picked up his books on his way and tousled Reno's hair when he walked past the boy, only bending down to give Reno a gentle kiss on the forehead. "I have to do some grown-up-stuff now. Is that okay?"
"But my puzzle…" Reno protested and held up some pieces of said jigsaw.
"Did I mention I am a master of solving puzzles?" Roxas asked smiling, sitting down across Reno.
"Weally?" Reno queried and dropped the pieces. He looked at Roxas for a while, absent-mindedly sucking on his thumb.
"Of course," Roxas replied and nodded. Then he leaned forward, winking at Reno and acting like he wanted to share a secret with the small boy. "And while your uncle has to do all the grown-up-stuff, we can eat all the sea-salt ice cream I brought," he whispered loud enough for Axel to hear.
Axel's face fell, while Reno started to giggle and nod enthusiastically. How did Roxas know Axel loved sea-salt ice cream? He stopped at the door and tried to protest… but he pouted sadly when Reno waved at him to go, shooing him away. That brat just didn't want to share his sea-salt ice cream!
Roxas also waved at him, grinning impishly and whispering something to Reno again. This time Axel couldn't make out the words, but again Reno started to giggle, pressing his little hands over his mouth as if to keep the secret in.
"Don't you have grown-up stuff to do?" Roxas asked smugly, and Axel felt his mouth twitch in annoyance. Both brats didn't want to share their ice cream it seemed.
But on the other hand he was glad that Reno seemed to like Roxas. He really needed the time to study…
"Fine," he huffed and threw first Roxas, then Reno a stern look. "Reno, you tell Roxas about the rules, right? I'm counting on you."
"Yessir!" Reno shouted and did something that strangely reminded Axel of a salute. He would have to ask the boy where he had gotten that from later. For now he was content with watching Reno plopping down in front of a surprised Roxas, raising one small, chubby hand to explain the rules.
He smiled at Roxas' confused expression when he shut the door behind him. Time to study.
Quick Note: As you probably all noticed, I'm kind of on a hiatus right now... Sorry to all of you who are still waiting for new stuff, especially a new Perfect Match chapter, but I'm afraid I can't provide anything new right now. I'm very sorry. But thank you to all of you who still haven't given up on me and wait for updates patiently - I hope I haven't lost you yet. Well then. I guess I can at least post this and other stuff that has been beta'd months ago.
By the way, a big THANK YOU to my beta Salem, who probably thinks I'm dead because I failed to keep in touch due to... personal... problems. Sorry, dear, I hope you don't hate me too much now.