*AXEL*

"Axel, wake up!" the teacher shouted as he slapped a book down on my desk. I awoke with a start, looking around, confused.

"What? Three!" I guessed, giving a random answer. My vision was blurry, so I tried to clear it by rubbing my eyes. Once my vision became clear, I stared into Saїx's cold, steely eyes.

"This is English, not math, young man," Saїx hissed at me. "Keep yourself awake and pay attention, or I'll call home. It's almost February and you're still sleeping in class?" I watched as he returned to the front of the classroom.
"Sorry," I offered, only halfway meaning it. He ignored me. I know it's childish, but I stuck out my tongue at his back.

I walked home with Xion and Roxas, as I usually do. I listened to them talk and laugh together, and felt isolated. Ever since they had started dating, they had spent a lot of time together. Even when I was with them, I felt like they weren't there, and like they were constantly in their own little world, leaving me feeling alone.

Maybe I'm just jealous of them, I realized. I've never had a girlfriend, after all.

"Bye, Roxas!" Xion said, giving him a quick hug. I realized we were at the point where Roxas turned and went a separate way. Had I spaced out for that long?

"Bye, Xion," Roxas smiled before walking away. She smiled back.

Xion and I walked in silence for awhile.

"Are you okay, Axel?" Xion asked, avoiding my curious gaze. Before I could respond, she added, "I mean, you've been silent the entire walk so far, and your mind doesn't seem to be here."

"I don't know," I responded, but it was only a whisper, so she didn't hear.

"We're going to town today, right? Just you, me and ice cream, right?" she smiled up at me.

"It's too cold for ice cream, Xion. There's still snow on the ground. We can go to my place for hot chocolate, if you want, though," I replied, trying to be nice.

"Okay!" she happily agreed, and we chatted the entire way to my house.

I enjoyed spending time with Xion. She could always make me smile, even when she didn't know I was sad.

About an hour after we began hanging out, Xion's phone rang. She rushed to get it out of her skirt pocket, and answered it happily.

"Hi, Roxas!" she gushed. I can't even have her to myself for an hour, I guess. Why is she so obsessed with Roxas? What does she see in him?

"Oh, nothing, just hanging out with Axel," she said. Did she just say hanging out with me is nothing?

"Uh-huh. Yeah. Okay. Be right over. Love you too!" she hung up the phone and slipped it back into her pocket.

"What was that about?" I asked casually, already knowing she was about to leave me for him again.

"Oh, Roxas wants me to meet up with him. Is that okay with you?" she asked. Without waiting for me to answer, she began to put on her backpack and check to make sure she had everything.

No! I wanted to shout. No, it is not okay that you leave me for him again! We've been close friends for quite a while, and now you just keep ditching me. Why, Xion?

"Yeah," I said. I got up to clear the table, pretending I didn't give a flying duck that she was abandoning.

"Are you sure?" Xion asked as she usually did. This time she didn't care; it was just out of courtesy.

"Yes," I sharply answered, turning away from her. If she was going to slowly slip away from me, I would at least pretend I was fine without her. It would make her miss what she had let go of after Roxas broke up with her. I would hide this pain. Don't they say the best revenge is to smile and make them believe you're happier without them?

Why am I thinking about revenge? Xion is my best friend! The door shut behind me. It surprised me that she took a while to leave.

Looking back on this moment, I wish I had done something better. For some reason, I just got angry and wouldn't talk to her that day. I wish I had, because after that, she stopped talking to me. Every second of her precious time was spent with Roxas.

A week later, I walked past her at lunch on my way to the school library. I just glanced at her out of the corner of my eye, and our gazes locked for a split second. Once she looked away, I felt betrayed. Roxas had his arm around her and was whispering something to her. She giggled and Roxas smiled. Everyone at their table smiled at them, but I just wanted to gag.

Remember me? I wanted to shout at her. We were best friends, when you were single.

"Hey, Axel!" someone called. I turned quickly toward the voice, half-hoping it was Xion finally speaking to me again. I turned to see Kairi. I was disappointed, but only for a second. Kairi and I were sort of becoming good friends. It was weird. "Where are you going?" she asked.

"The library," I replied.

"Oh," she replied, looking down.

"Is something wrong?" I asked. She looked really bummed, and I didn't want her to be upset.

"Have you seen Riku?" she asked. "He hasn't been to school in a few weeks."

"No, I don't know where he is. Have you tried calling him?" I asked. I had noticed Riku had been gone, but hadn't thought to ask anyone.

"Yes. I even went to his house. His mom barely opened the door and said he couldn't talk right now. Do you think something's wrong with him?" she asked. Tears were welling up in her eyes, and fast. I knew she and Riku were good friends, and had been since they were kids, so I knew this wasn't some crazy overreaction. Something really must be wrong.

I hugged Kairi, and she didn't pull away. I heard her crying get worse, and so I began to pet her hair. I looked over at Xion, to see if she was paying attention. She wasn't. I sat Kairi down at a table nearby, and sat with her there. Once she had calmed down, I offered to go with her today to Riku's house. She agreed to come with me. I gave her another hug before we went our separate ways. This time, Xion was watching.