A/N: Warning: Axel has a dirty mouth.

When I'm Not With You.

I was going to give Axel a piece of my mind.

He was so pumped on getting Riku wasted, and in the end he ended up as the wasted one! So stupid. So irresponsible.

The reasonable side of me was berating me for judging him without knowing his side of the story, but I didn't want to listen. I was too angry. The unreasonable side was dominating right now. I was angry I had to cut my time short with Naminé, and I was angry Axel was too absorbed in his own problems to solve mine.

I was being selfish right now, but I didn't care.

The bar wasn't too far from where Naminé lived, which was good at least. I managed to get there in fifteen minutes. My friends and brother were easy to find, since they appeared to be having some sort of a scuffle in the parking lot. How embarrassing.

"Axel, calm down!" I heard Ven yell as he dodged one of the redhead's oncoming punches, "We're not trying to hurt you!"

"SHUT UP!" He bellowed as I scrambled out of my car, "A-all of you...all of you are...are ass-"

"Axel," I approached him slowly, "What are you doing?"

"Roxas," Demyx sighed in relief, "Thank God."

"R-R-" My male best friend hiccuped, "Roxas! BUDDY!" He threw his arms around me, picked me up and spun me around once. My ribcage was piercing my lungs. "What are you doin' here? I, I, I thought Ven was-"

"You look a bit tired, man," I huffed when he finally set me back on the ground, "Maybe I should take you home. You look like you need a good nights' sleep."

Axel raised an eyebrow. "Huh?" His green eyes narrowed and he stepped away from me, "N-no...you're...you're just like THEM!" He pointed towards Ven and Demyx, who were shaking their heads and shrugging their shoulders in confusion, "They're...t-they're trying to, trying to...fuckin' what was I supposed to say-"

"I've forgotten how stupid you become when you're drunk," I muttered; I grabbed his arm and dragged him towards my car, "Alright, if you won't cooperate I guess I'm gonna have to take matters into my own hands."

"W-wait," Axel squirmed as Ven took hold of his other arm; Demyx kept one hand on his back, "Where...where are we-"

"You're spending the night at my house," I said firmly as I shoved him into the passenger's seat of my car, "And I'm not letting you leave until you tell me everything." I turned towards my brother and friend. "Sorry about this, guys."

Demyx shrugged. "Hey, no biggie. D'you think I can drop by in the morning, though - y'know, just to check up on him and stuff. I can drive him home then too if you'd like."

I nodded. "Sounds good. What about you, bro? You coming with me?"

My oldest brother rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess so. I have nothing better to do." He patted Demyx on the back before clambering into the back seat.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning then, Dem." I gave him a pat on the back of my own before heading inside my car. I made sure Axel had his seatbelt buckled. "You okay, Axel?"

His head was lolled back against the headrest, his limbs were slack and his eyes were partially closed but he nodded…I think.

"I'll take that as a yes." I rolled down his window. "Just don't yack in my car."

"So," Ven drawled as I began the drive back to my apartment, "Demyx told me that Axel was fighting with his girlfriend or something."

"Yeah," My eyes flitted to my rearview mirror, "Him and Larxene haven't been talking this past week, but neither of them would tell us why. I'm hoping Axel would be able to tell us since he's intoxicated, but…" I glanced at him; he looked on the verge of passing out, "I don't know if that's possible anymore."

"Well, you saved his butt tonight," Ven said as I turned a corner, "Maybe you can blackmail him the next morning - say he owes you or something."

"That might work." I switched lanes. "I wonder what it could be, though? It must be something really bad for them to not talk for a week…"

"For sure - and if it's something Axel is willing to get himself wasted for then it's gotta be something bad. He was always the type to hold in his liquor."

"Yeah," I frowned, "Well...hopefully your blackmail plan works."

By the time we reached my apartment Axel was barely conscious. Ven and I had to carry him all the way. Now that there was some light I could see Ven in my artist costume: he looked exactly like me when I dyed my hair and wore clothes like those. I guess it wasn't such a bad idea to get him to stand in for me after all.

"Y'know," Axel huffed as we hauled him down the hallway; I hoped my neighbours couldn't hear him because he was speaking rather loudly, "W-women...women are-" He hiccuped, "-women are nothing but trouble."

Ven and I exchanged glances. "Oh? And why is that?" I searched my pockets for my keys; my fingers brushed against the paper crane for a split second and Naminé popped into my head; I was supposed to call her! Guess I had no choice but to wait until Axel settles down…

"Because," My male best friend continued rambling as we carried him through the door and into my suite, "T-they...they make you think you know...k-know everything about them...but you DON'T!"

"What do you mean?" Ven asked as we brought him to one of the guest bedrooms. Thank God for the penthouse suite.

"T-they...they just loooooooove to fuck us dudes over." Once we placed Axel on the bed he sat up to violently poke me in the chest. "Y'know what I...w-what I'm talkin' about! Out of ALL people y-you should know what the...what the hell I'm talkin' about! You...you probably...pr-probably...prob-" He clamped a hand over his mouth and raced to the adjoined bathroom.

I ruffled my hands through my hair. "I'm guessing he thinks Larxene screwed him over somehow."

"Yeah," My brother agreed, "But I guess we can't really get the full story 'till tomorrow morning."

"P-probably-" Axel's voice echoed from inside the bathroom; he was trying to speak in between retches, "-j-just as fucked over...as-" He paused to regurgitate again, "-a-as me…"

"Hm...maybe Larxene's cheating on him? I mean...judging from what he's saying - no offense." My brother held up his hands, but I shrugged.

"Naminé can't be cheating on me when we were never together in the first place." I replied emotionlessly. I sat up and mussed up my hair again. "Hey, it's late now. Maybe you should stay over too."

"You sure?" Ven stood up as well, "I don't wanna be a hassle or anything-"

"You definitely won't be as much of a hassle as Mister I-Hate-Women over there," I smirked as I jerked my head towards the door to the bathroom; right on cue Axel puked some more, "And you live, like, across town! There's no way I'm making you drive all the way back."

"I only live an hour away, Rox."

"Still, that's pretty far," I chuckled as I threw an arm around his shoulders, "And it's been a long night. Just take the other room."

"You have another room?" He gaped at me, and I flushed.

"There's only three rooms, chill." I led him back into the hallway and pointed at the door just across. "Right there. I'll get you something to sleep in and everything."

"What about Axel?"

"I'll take care of him, don't worry. I'll be back," I quickly poked into my room to grab a pair of shorts and shirt for my brother to wear, and when I returned I tossed them over to him, "There. Now you're all set."

Ven smiled and pulled me in for a one-armed hug. "Thanks, Roxas."

"Eh, it's the least I can do for helping me tonight," I smiled back, "Anyways, I gotta check up on the drunkard. Sleep well, bro."

"You too." He closed the door, and I made my way back to the second bedroom.

When I got there Axel had just flushed the toilet and stumbled out of the bathroom, pale and exhausted. He ripped off his beret and hair tie before collapsing face-first on the bed. "Ugh." His voice was muffled against the pillows.

"Er, are you gonna be okay?" I leaned against the doorframe.

"Gimme a few hours of sleep and I'll get back to you." He muttered, and I chuckled.

"Alright." I spun on my heel to leave but when I heard Axel mumble my name I turned around again. "Yeah?"

"I'll...I'll tell you e...e-everything tomorrow morning. I promise."

I felt excited and scared at the same time. "Alright, Axel. 'Night."

"'Night." I closed the door behind me.

When I returned to my room I glanced at the clock radio, and my eyes nearly bulged out of their skull when I realized it was nearly two in the morning. Did dragging Axel all the way from the bar to my apartment take that long? I left Naminé's place at around ten or so; driving to the bar and getting Axel only felt like it lasted half an hour or so.

I plucked my phone out of my pocket; my pinky somehow caught onto the paper crane as well, so when I pulled my hand out the small blue bird flipped into the air and landed soundlessly on my bed. I picked it up and placed it on top of my clock radio.

I glanced at the time again and frowned; it was really late now. Was it worth it to call her? What if she was asleep? I didn't want to wake her.

But I promised to call…

Before I could make up my mind I somehow ended up dialing her number anyway, and I gulped as I listened to it ring once…

Actually, it didn't even finish ringing once. "Roxas?" Naminé sounded wide awake and frightened.

"I'm home, Naminé." I sat on the edge of my bed and ran my fingers through my hair. I cradled my phone on my shoulder and reached for the paper crane. "Everything's okay now."

"You sound awfully calm for someone who had to rush off to an emergency," She muttered, "How long have you been home? You promised you'd call the-"

"-millisecond I got home, I know," I finished her sentence, "But under the circumstances I couldn't do that. I had to take care of a few things. I'm sorry; you know I would've called you sooner if I had the chance to."

She was silent for a few seconds. "Oh. Yeah, you're right...sorry. I...I was just really worried…" She sniffled, and my eyes widened; oh please, oh please don't cry… "I couldn't sleep. I couldn't sleep until you called me. I was so scared."

I laughed in a vain attempt to lighten the mood. "I wasn't the one in a state of emergency, Naminé; don't act like my life is on the line or anything. I'm okay, and there's nothing to be scared of - there was nothing to be scared of to begin with."

"If there was nothing to be scared of why did you sound so panicky when you had to leave?"

I gulped and thought quickly. "Er, well that's because I thought there was something to be scared of-"

"What happened? Maybe that would help me understand the situation."

I forced myself to think faster. "My…" I was so anxious I thought I was going to start hyperventilating, "My dad. My dad, he...he fell."

"Oh no," She sounded devastated, "Fell from where?"

"He was up on a ladder fixing a broken window - he works as a window repairer, you see," That was actually the truth, and the story I was about to tell her actually did happen - she didn't have to know that it happened well over ten years ago, however… "And the family whose house he was fixing had a really big dog, and it accidentally brushed against the ladder and it kinda just...tumbled."

"That's terrible," Naminé's voice was barely above a whisper, "Is...is he okay?"

"Just a broken leg and a few scrapes and bruises," I shrugged, "But other than that he's fine."

"I guess that's not so bad, but...erm," I could picture her tugging on her hair, "At his age...shouldn't he be retired? And why would he be repairing windows when it's dark out?"

"It happened earlier in the afternoon but I was just informed of it when I was at your place," I answered quickly, "As for the retirement thing...well, he loves his job too much to quit. He's stronger than you think - he's full of surprises."

I sighed inwardly when I heard her giggle from the other end. "Just like you."

I flushed. "Yeah, I guess. Anyways, now that you know everything's okay can you please get some sleep?"

"I will," She said, "But you better get some sleep too!"

"I'm going to sleep soon after I hang up, I promise." I tousled my hair. "Goodnight, Naminé. Sweet dreams."

"You too, Roxas." I canceled the call and stared at the screen for a couple seconds before tossing my phone on my nightstand. What a night.

After all the stuff that happened in the past few hours I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to sleep, but once I washed and changed for bed and crawled underneath my sheets fatigue hit me like a freight train and I was out instantly. I guess all the stuff that happened in the past few hours really tired me out, and I was just too overwhelmed with everything to realize it.

I don't remember whether I was too tired to close my blinds or I simply just forgot, but because there was nothing to shield the sun I woke up pretty early. It wasn't like I minded much, anyway; I felt well-rested enough and I didn't think I would be able to go back to sleep if I tried.

I trudged to the bathroom and washed off all traces of morning grogginess with a cold shower. I languidly dressed into jeans and a t-shirt and ruffled the back of my damp hair as I stepped out of my room, only to be blinded by more sun. It was barely seven in the morning.

Wait, what was that smell…?

It was coming from the kitchen. I cautiously made my way down the hallway with one eyebrow raised; was Ven awake? Why was he up so early? It couldn't have been Axel; even if he didn't drink himself to death the night before he would wake up well past noon.

When I entered the kitchen I spotted my oldest brother by the stove, humming tunelessly to himself as he flipped a few pancakes. Even though I was being extra quiet he managed to notice me; he turned around and gave me a Sora-like grin. "'Morning little brother," He waved a spatula in the air, "This is the first time I've seen you up this early in years!" I noticed that his hair was back to blond; he must've been up really early if he had time to scrub all that dye off.

I took a seat by the kitchen table and rubbed my face with my hands. Those pancakes smelled really good. "Why are you up so early?"

Ven placed the pancakes in front of me, along with another plate and some utensils. "Used to it, I guess," He said as he dug through my pantry for the maple syrup, "Work kinda embeds itself into your schedule when it's all you've been doing these days."

"How early do you wake up, exactly…?"

"Erm, around five, five-thirty?" He opened the fridge and grabbed the butter.

"Wow," I gaped as he sat next to me, "I can't imagine doing that all the time. Your hours are so early."

"Well, I have regular nine-to-five hours like everyone else," Ven admitted bashfully as he reached for his knife, "But I dunno...I like waking up early. I feel like I waste too many hours a day with my eyes closed. I don't like being blind from the world." A distant smiled formed on his face and for a second it looked like he was thinking back to a fond past memory. "Plus...the sunrise always looks prettier than the sunset."

The things my oldest brother says baffle me sometimes. "You're such a girl."

Before Ven could retaliate a zombie-like groan emitted from the doorway. The both of us looked up to see Axel slumped against the wall. "Ungh," He muttered as he slapped a hand to his forehead, "I'm not even going to ask what happened…"

"'Morning sunshine," Ven beamed; he nodded towards the chair across from me, "Have something to eat."

"Don't mention food, please," My redheaded best friend clutched his stomach, "Roxas...aspirin…"

"There should be some in your bathroom, Axel," I said before taking a bite of my pancakes, "And remember what you promised me last night?"

His eyes popped open. "Huh?"

I smirked. "You promised you'd tell me everything."

He scrunched his forehead for a moment as he forced himself to think back. "Oh...right. Dammit." He shook his head. "Fine, I'll spill - after this headache goes away." He stumbled back into the hallway.

"Maybe you should call Demyx," Ven suggested, "He'll want to know what's up." He finished his breakfast quickly and moved towards the sink to clean up.

"What about you?" I asked as I cut myself another piece of pancake, "Aren't you gonna stay?"

I frowned when my brother shook his head. "Nah, I think I've done all I can here...for now - plus this stuff's none of my business." He brushed his fingers through his hair. "If you ever need another decoy just call me and I'll swing by again okay? I'll always be around if you need help, Rox."

I stood up and followed Ven to the front door, and I pulled him into a hug. "Thanks," I mumbled into his shoulder, "But...I wish you could stay. I...I would've wanted Naminé to meet you."

My brother laughed as he searched his pockets for his car keys. "I don't think now's the best time for introductions, Rox. Plus, you're going to Lea's wedding aren't you?"

I raised an eyebrow, confused. "Yeah, so?"

"Then why don't you invite her to come with you? I can meet her then." He opened the door and gave me a friendly salute. "See you around, little brother. Keep in touch."

I completely forgot about Lea's wedding. Did Larxene and Axel's fight have something to do with it…?

"Ven left?" Axel was standing a few feet away from me, still dressed in his artsy clothes from the night before, "Huh, I wish he stayed. Haven't seen the guy in awhile."

"Yeah," I shrugged, "Oh well. He said to call him again if we ever need his help."

"That's cool." Axel wandered into the television room and flopped onto the couch. "I haven't had a hangover this bad since college."

"Your fault," I rolled my eyes as I sat on the armrest, "So…are you gonna tell me now or what?"

"Get Demyx first - I don't wanna repeat everything."

Oh, right - I forgot to do that. I dashed into my room to grab my phone and I dialed quickly. "Hey, Demyx?"

"Unnghhh…" He moaned sleepily, "'Ello…? Roxas…?"

"Hey man, sorry for waking you up so early but Axel's feeling better and he said he'd tell us everything if you came over as soon as possible."

"'Kay...ten minutes." He hung up on me immediately after that. I guess that meant he was coming in ten minutes.

"Is he coming?" Axel was face-first on the couch when I returned to the television room.

"Yeah, in ten minutes...I think." I returned to my spot on the armrest. "Can you at least give me a tiny hint?"

"No." My male best friend rolled over and threw an arm over his eyes. "Just wait 'till Demyx gets here."

I impatiently twiddled my thumbs as I waited for Demyx to come. Every few minutes or so my eyes would dart to the digital time on the DVD player underneath the TV: five minutes, six minutes, seven minutes…

What were Axel and Larxene fighting over, and was it really bad to the point where Axel had to drink himself away last night? Why was it so bad to the point where Larxene arrived a few hours late to work every morning since this week started?

Twelve minutes later Demyx arrived. "How'ya doin'?" He jokingly petted Axel's head, and the redhead swatted his hand away.

"Hands off," He growled, "Do you wanna know what's up or not?"

Demyx immediately retracted his hand and hung his head. "Sorry."

I impatiently crossed my arms and glared down at Axel, who still had one arm covering his eyes. "Stop stalling!"

He let out a long sigh. "Fine, fine. Geez. You guys are like a couple of high school girls."

"Well, it's not every day your friend stops talking with his girlfriend for a week," Demyx rolled his eyes, "And it's not every day your friend comes late to work on purpose to-"

"I get it," Axel muttered, "Okay, do you really wanna know?"

"Yes." Demyx and I answered exasperatingly. This was getting annoying now…

"Do you really, really wanna know?"

"Yes!"

Axel sighed again and sat up, rubbing his face and leaning forward to rest his elbows on his thighs. He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.

"God, I can't believe-"

"Holy shit, Axel," Demyx threw up his hands, "Just freaking tell us already. Holding it off ain't gonna do anything."

My redheaded best friend lifted his head and stared us dead in the eyes.

"Larxene's pregnant."

Chapter Inspiration: Drinking for 11 by Mad Caddies.

Cliffhanger...I know. Sorry.