Disclaimer: I don't own KH, it belongs to Square-Enix and Disney.
A/n: Sorry this took so long, I got a babysitting job and now I don't have hardly any free time. This chapter is a little bit short, but I really liked it. I took extra time to make sure it didn't suck. Things may get a little weird from here on…
Chapter Six: Family Values
She couldn't help but stare at him, he really was very handsome. His beautiful green eyes shone happily and he grinned up at her. She smiled back at him and forced her gaze to the side, watching the images flash across the TV screen. His hand rested gently on her stomach as the tiny foot beat against it, making him smile even wider.
"You really like kids, huh?" Namine asked. Axel looked up at her again and nodded. She watched him for several more minutes before gently pushing him off and standing up.
"I need to finish getting ready." She said, offering him a small, apologetic smile as she moved towards the kitchen.
Half an hour later, Axel was still seated sadly on the couch when a knock sounded at the door. He forced himself up off the couch and opened it, looking down blankly at the smiling girl standing there.
"Is Namine ready?" Olette asked.
Axel stared a moment longer before it registered in his mind and he turned to check on her. Olette followed him down the stairs to the basement where Namine should be packing what few things she owned. They rounded the beam at the bottom of the stairs and Axel glanced around the room for the young blonde girl.
"Namine?" Olette called softly, looking around the edge of the bed to find the girl curled up beside a cardboard box filled with clothing.
She jolted awake when she heard the footsteps next to the bed, sitting up quickly and looking up in surprise as Olette leaned over her.
"I'm so sorry!" She cried, pulling the box over to her and shoving more clothing inside hurriedly. "I didn't mean to fall asleep, I'm not even close to being ready!"
"It's alright, I'll help you." Olette smiled sweetly down at her and kneeled to help pile the clothing in the box.
Axel grabbed another ox and stated stacking some of her personal belongings in it, watching the blonde out of the corner of his eye as the two girls talked quietly together.
'It's better she goes with her than stays here anyway…' He thought to himself, glancing around the room in distaste.
xXx
"Hey."
Namine looked up with a blush when she realized Riku was standing right in front of her. 'What is wrong with me?'
"Hey, what are you doing here?" She asked quietly as Olette jumped down from the back of the truck. He shrugged and smiled.
"I came to help, you shouldn't be carrying boxes around like that." He poked her stomach gently for emphasis and she rubbed the spot absently as she watched him walk over to where Olette was standing. She handed him a box from the back of the truck.
"You alright?" Olette's mother asked as she walked up behind Namine. She patted the girl on the shoulder and Namine looked up at her in surprise.
"Yea, I was just thinking." She said softly, following the older woman up the stairs to the house.
It was a beautiful three story house, complete with a large side yard with two huge oak trees. She had to admit she had never been here before, so moving in on her first visit made her feel a little nervous. The woman held the door open for her and she quickly followed her inside and down a long hallway.
"This is your new room." The woman said cheerfully as she opened a door near the end of the hall. "Olette's room is upstairs in the attic, she can show you when you two are done unpacking." She smiled and stepped aside as Riku carried a box into the room to set beside the neatly made bed. He grinned at Namine as he walked back out the door to grab another box.
She looked around the room as the older woman walked back outside. It was fairly large, the walls were painted a very faint yellow with white trim, giving it a nice glow. There was a huge window looking out at the backyard, and a white dresser against one wall. The closed had mirrors for doors, and she walked over to it to examine her reflection. Her stomach was well rounded now, sticking out under her white dress as she ran her hands over it and smiled.
"Do you like it?" Olette asked, setting down a box and looking over at Namine curiously.
She nodded. "Its wonderful." She said happily.
It didn't take long to unload all of her belongings, and just as they were finishing up, Roxas appeared in the doorway.
"I didn't know you were moving in, Namine." He said, giving a small wave around the room to the three teenagers seated on the white carpet.
"What do you want?" Olette asked playfully as he walked over to her. He shrugged and grinned.
"I came to see if you wanted to go see a movie." He said confidently. Olette giggled before remembering the other two people in the room.
"Oh, we have to take Namine and Riku then." She stated, grabbing Namine's hand and helping her to her feet.
"Sounds like fun." Riku said quickly, getting to his feet and following the others out of the room.
It was a short walk to the mall from Olette's house, and Riku held the door for everyone as the walked inside. The movie theatre was at the other end, and Olette quickly began window shopping as they walked along. The food court came up on their left and Olette ran over to see the novelty shop next to it, leaving Namine standing there alone. She glanced over toward the food court for a moment, and caught a flash of red out of the corner of her eye.
"Reno…" She whispered to herself, noticing the long red ponytail trailing down his back. He was seated at a table with a group of people she didn't know, with a dark haired girl leaning her head on his arm. Namine's hands clasped together in front of her as she stared at him, the breath catching in her throat. She had known it wasn't right, but he meant a lot to her.
"You alright?" Riku asked, stepping in front of her and forcing her to tear her eyes away from her "boyfriend".
"Yeah, let's go." She said shakily, letting him lead her along to where Olette and Roxas were waiting.
xXx
Namine stared up at the clock above the teacher's desk, watching the minutes tick by. The bell rang and she jumped from her seat, throwing her bag over her shoulder and running out the door. School was finally out, and she had more work to do. With a little over a month to go, she had to find a way to get what she needed for the baby.
She walked as fast as she could, finally spotting Kairi through the crowd of people thundering down the school's front steps.
"Kairi!!" She called out, waving an arm so the other girl could spot her. Her eyes grew wide when she realized who it was, and shoved through the crowd to reach her.
"Namine! I have missed you so much!" She grabbed her little sister and hugged her happily, pulling her aside to give them a little more privacy.
"How are you doing? Not much longer now, huh?" She patted her belly in excitement.
"Oh, not bad, I suppose. I moved in with Olette a few days ago, I get my own room now." She smiled happily a the older girl. "But, I was hoping you could help me…" She trailed off and Kairi leaned closer in interest.
"Of course, I'd help you with anything, what is it?" She asked seriously.
Namine looked down at her hands for a moment before meeting her sister's gaze again. "I need stuff for the baby, and I don't have any way to get it." She said sadly.
"Hmm, well, I can take you to ask mom and dad for help." Kairi replied.
Namine looked at her for a moment before finally agreeing. Kairi led her along through the neighborhood, talking excitedly to her about what they'd need for the baby. All too soon, it seemed, they were standing before the enormous house, staring up at it like it was the end of the world. Kairi reached over and grabbed Namine's hand, stepping forward bravely and pushing the door open.
"Oh good, Kairi, you're home-" Their mother rounded the corner from the living room and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Namine standing there. None of them spoke as they stared around at each other nervously.
"Mom." Kairi stated bravely. "Your other daughter needs help."
The older woman began to shake her head gently, staring at the blonde girl standing in her foyer.
"Absolutely not." She stated, looking down her nose in disgust at her rejected daughter.
"What's going on?" The deep voice of their father cut in and Namine watched him enter the hallway in fear. He gave her an angry look when he saw her and quickly joined his wife.
"Namine, get out." His voice was seething with anger, and she gladly would have obeyed if her sister had not gripped her arm tightly.
"She needs help with the baby." Kairi said firmly, staring right back as her parents watched them.
"We already made our decision, the only help we're going to give is if she needs to pay for an abortion." Her father growled and took a threatening step towards them.
Namine tried to take a step back, but Kairi held her still. "That's enough. She's family, and she needs help, so we're going to help her. She needs money, now." Kairi stated. Namine felt her cheeks flush nervously and she ran a protective hand over her stomach as the unborn child began to squirm.
"She disobeyed us and shamed our family, why should we do anything to help her?" Her mother howled in fury. Her face was beat red as she glared daggers at the two sisters.
Namine cast a worried glance up at Kairi, almost begging her to drop it and let her leave. Kairi merely gave her a confident smile as she took out her cell phone.
"You're going to give her some money, or I'm calling this is in to social services." She said with a smirk, flipping open the phone.
The two furious adults exchanged looks.
xXx
Namine stared down at the check in her trembling hands. $1,000. And more next month, they had said. She looked over at her sister, who was sitting beside her, grinning proudly.
"There, told you I'd do anything to help you." She said smugly, looking down at the check curiously. "We can cash it tomorrow and I'll take you shopping."
Namine smiled happily. "Thanks, Kairi. I'm sorry I got you kicked out, too, though…" She said shyly, glancing around the room at the new stacks of boxes that had been hurriedly dropped off.
Kairi shrugged. "It's alright, I was fed up with those two anyway. How they ever became our parents I'll never understand. Besides, Sora and Riku are getting an apartment this summer and I was going to leave anyway."
That statement made Namine feel better, and she leaned back against the headboard. Her stomach began to jump and Kairi burst out laughing, poking at it curiously.
"Does she always do that?" She asked, setting her hand flat on her stomach and feeling the tiny movements.
Namine smiled to herself, she was getting very accustomed to having people touch her stomach. "Yeah, she does that a lot." She replied quietly.
End of Chapter Six Review and I promise to update much faster!