Disclaimer: "Hello?" "Hi, I'd like to buy your company." "What are you? 10?" hangs up "How rude!"
Note: FF may delete spaces, punctuation marks, letters, etc. from the story... So if there's something there that I don't catch, sorry!
luluNOTE:
Hey, everybody! I'm sorry if this was a bit late… I was going to post this last night at 2 am when I finished writing it, but my internet suddenly died and I couldn't get it to start back up since I didn't want to wake everyone else in the house up.
But there's good news for everybody! This chapter is longer than all the other chapters since I had a short period of writing turbo power!
The Zemyx that people wanted isn't going to come rolling in until Zexion is actually introduced, but don't worry. It'll come up when the time is right. -wink-
In this chapter I made a lot of little connections to other things. Haha. After I watch a movie, series, etc. I always get influenced by it and it kind of affects my brain. I'll put a (+) next to all the references I make and tell you about after the author's notes at the end of the chapter for those of you who don't figure it out or don't get it. The reason I'm putting a (+) instead of an asterisk is because FF deletes all my asterisks apparently. -frown-
So here's your chapter!!! TAT -is pooped-
Title: Broken Clockwork
Chapter: 5; Pasta Party Time
Summary: Roxas was always on top of things, following time down to the second. Until he met Axel, carefree and fun. What happens when you mix two opposite elements of life together?
THANKS SO MUCH TO cherry, Erinicole12, and DemmyandZexy FOR REVIEWING! YOU GUYS LIGHT UP MY DAY! Haha.
Kisses to everybody that reads,
Lovely Lulu
oXoXoXo
As I sat in my seat during history, I was extremely worried for Roxas. I furrowed my eyebrows and stared down at the desk, head in hands, pretending to listen to Ms. Jergen's lecture on Egyptians doing all their weird stuff for their king. Who cares, anyways? It's not like any of that would be useful later in life. "Hey! My name's Sora and Egyptians put their kings in mummy cases! They took their brains out from their noses and stuff! Give me a job!" Yeah. I don't think so. My eyelids started to fall, but I was staying awake… Just barely. I tried my best to take in as much information as I could, but the more I listened, the more I just wanted to lie down and sleep. History was definitely not my thing.
I wondered if Roxas would be okay, as I looked down at my textbook, probably cracked open to the wrong page. I looked at the picture on the side of the page. It was of a Chinese warrior… Yep, I was definitely on the wrong page. I hoped the teacher wouldn't notice. I picked up my pencil and started to doodle on the sheet of notebook paper hidden underneath the heavy cover of the book. It started out with a swirl, then eventually picked up and became hair, then a face, a head, a neck, shoulders… Roxas.
Oh, man! I needed to stop getting sidetracked! I had to figure out what to do with Roxas! He was probably wallowing in self-pity right now! I began to fall asleep, though, and finally succumbed to the sleepy side. I had a dream about last night…
"NAMINÉ?!"
"She came to the house about 20 minutes ago, but I didn't want to wake you up, so I just…" I trailed off, noticing that neither of them were listening. Instead they were intent on staring at each other with the strangest expressions. Roxas, with a look of horror, shock, surprise on his face and Naminé, with a look of concern, worry, caution on hers. Roxas' mouth was agape, as he was overcome by a total daze.
"Can I come in?" Naminé asked, unsure.
"Yeah, sure. Come sit with us," I patted the chair beside the couch Roxas was currently residing upon. She walked over to the chair and sat down, playing with her hair.
"Sorry I came so suddenly and so out of the blue. I just wanted to visit everyone, I guess," she said, apologetically bobbing her head down.
Suddenly, Roxas' jaw became unhinged and began to move.
"Sorry? Visit? You've been gone for 3 years. THREE YEARS, NAMINÉ. We haven't heard a single word from you since you left. Everybody's been wondering what happened to you! Lots of people called you, e-mailed you, sent letters to you, but you never responded. What was up with that, huh? Then you suddenly reappear after all this time to come casually VISIT us, like you were on a planned vacation, or something?!" Roxas was spazzing out about it, and I was kind of freaking out, but Naminé sat there, ever so quiet, waiting for him to finish. When Roxas stopped talking, Naminé looked up, eyes about to roll out the tears. I was taken aback, but Roxas was not the least fazed.
"Look! I'm sorry, okay? And I never received any letters from anyone! I had thought that everyone had cut off all contact with ME! I never got a single letter, e-mail, or call! I would've come to visit you sooner, but I was too busy with everything my parents were pushing on me, so SORRY. Okay? I'm sorry," a line of tears began to fall down her delicate, pale cheeks. Roxas was a sucker for crying girls, but when it came to Naminé, he was emotionless. I just watched from the side as the two, er… conversed. I didn't want to get involved in this.
"You're sorry. Fine, but why did you have to come back and visit me? Why couldn't you just pretend you never visited and went off to talk to your friends? Another year or two wouldn't have done any harm," Roxas spit out and Naminé winced. Ouch, I thought. That was harsh.
"I'm not here to take your money, Roxas…"
"Psh! Yeah, right. That was all you ever did anyways. Take my money to fund yourself. What? Want another popsicle or something? I'm not going to be played like a fool again, alright?" Ooh… Even harsher… I bit my lip and cringed.
Roxas and Naminé had been an item 3 years ago, before Nami packed her bags and left. They had been going out for about a year, which really surprised me. They seemed like the happiest couple ever with Roxas buying Naminé anything and everything she wanted, but that was just the problem. Naminé wasn't… Rich, so to speak. Her family was composed of artists, like herself, and they didn't make much of a living, since, and I hate to admit it, but… Not many artists fall into the rich category. They spend their lives trying to sell artwork or whatever and end up not making too much money. Roxas was the big Moneybags at school along with me. And Naminé knew. She, or possibly her parents, made it her responsibility to mooch as much money off Roxas as one would call decent and use it to help buy her family food, clothes, whatever was needed. What a deceptive little witch. I never really disliked her, but Roxas had grown to not hate her, but… strongly dislike her. He had really thought she liked him. I kind of felt bad for him.
"Roxas! I'm not here to take your money!" she was getting agitated. I couldn't blame her. I'd probably try to rip out Roxas' head if he started talking like that to me.
"Get out, Naminé," he whispered, chin now resting on his chest as he look down as his lap.
"What?"
"Get. Out. Naminé," he lifted his head slowly, staring her down. "GET OUT!"
"God!" she cried, jumping from her chair in the living room. "You can be such a jerk sometimes!" she ran out of the house, bawling, and I really felt sorry for her. Roxas didn't have to be so mean! He rarely acted like that. I guess some scars never heal… or whatever.
"Roxas…" I leaned over to touch his arm gently, but he pulled away hastily. I frowned, biting down on my lower lip. Oh, gosh. He was grumpy…
"I'm going up to my room. If you need me later, I'll be up there," he slid his feet over the side of the couch and got up from his position. "Thanks for the hot chocolate, Sora," he set the unfinished cup on the coffee table and turned to head up the stairs. I watched his back as he left the room then stared down at my own hot chocolate, mixing it slowly with the straw in the cup. What was Naminé doing back in town anyways?
"SORA…!" I heard a voice call out in the middle of my dream.
"Sora. Sora!" Somebody shook my shoulder, whispering my name harshly. I blinked tiredly and look around the room, yawning and bringing my hands up above my head. Everybody was looking at me. How odd.
"Wake up, Sora," the same somebody continued to gently shake me. Suddenly, I realized what had happened.
"OH, SHI-" my hand flew up to my mouth. I was now wide awake. Ah, damn. I did it again. I can never stay awake in History… I scratched the back of my neck and sighed discreetly. I turned to my side to look at the kid who woke me up. Uh…
"Thanks so much for waking me up," I smiled at her. Who was this kid? I'll just pretend I know her. She started to blush furiously and had to turn around and cover her face up. Ha. See? I do that to people. Alright, don't get cocky, Sora.
"Y-Y-You're welcome," came a stammered reply.
"Sora. Would you like to go nap in the PRINCIPLE'S OFFICE, perhaps?" Ms. Jergen looked at me viciously for 2 seconds, then softened her gaze to that of a hateful glare. "Or should I just send you there to call your parents so you can nap at HOME?"
"I'm sorry, ma'am. It won't happen again," I bowed my head and folded my hands on the desk, looking very sincere. When I looked up, she was smiling faintly. It must be the 'ma'am'. It gets them every time.
"Well, it's good to know that you can realize your mistakes. Hopefully I won't catch you snoozing off in my class again, Sora?" She said the last sentence with a questioning tone.
"No, ma'am. Of course not. Please forgive me," I was laughing inside at her easy-to-achieve forgiving. I mean, I may seem like an innocent kid on the outside and everything, but really I'm not. Or, at least, I like to think that way. I mean, I am pretty nice and all, but some pretty devilish things happen inside my head sometimes… Even if all my friends tell me I'd never be able to be the sly kid, no matter what. Oh, man… I want a better stereotype than Mr. Goody-Goody Two Shoes!
Ms. Jergen smiled and continued to teach the class. I just wanted to get out of here and talk to Roxas… I wondered if he would want to talk to his brother about this… I hope he's okay…
oXoXoXo
5…
4…
3…
2…
1…
BBBRRRIIINNNGGG!
"Alright, class. Have a nice day."
I grabbed my backpack and got out of there as fast as I could. I had no time to spare, of course. After school I had to go to art classes. I went off to go find Sora so we could get in the car and go, go, go. I pushed through a sea of kids in the hallway, looking for Sora. Through the busy crowd of students I saw him standing at his usual spot next to his locker, talking to Kairi. I had expected his regular "OMG, KAIRI! GUESS WHAT?!" face, but this time he had a different facial expression.
Was that… Worry?
I strode up to behind him and stood there, listening in. Yeah, yeah. I know it's bad to eavesdrop on other people's conversations… But Sora was never worried. Never.
"…So, then Naminé left in tears and Roxas went upstairs after she left. He didn't even finish his hot chocolate, Kai! His HOT CHOCOLATE! So, then I was sitting on the couch, more worried than ever if he would be okay, but it's not like I can just go up to his room, right? That'd just be awkward! So then I just sat there by myself and worried! Then, last night, I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about what would happen. This is a big thing for Roxas, you know? I don't know what to do now! So then I fell asleep in History and I had a dream about what happened, and it only made me worry even more!"
He was… worried about me? My eyebrows scrunched together and I frowned. He couldn't sleep… for me?
I made eye contact with Kairi and she smiled sadly at me, as if pitying my existence. What was up with that? Whatever. She must've thought she was helping or something. She nodded toward a falling-apart Sora slightly and I got the hint that she wanted me to talk to him. Blahhh… Family heart-to-heart talks weren't exactly my thing, but I had an art class to get to and Sora had to make a stop at home using my red baby. I tapped him lightly on the shoulder and smiled at him reassuringly. See? I can be a good older brother… Even if it's only by 2 minutes.
"Ready to go, Sora? The teacher's not going to wait for me, you know," He looked up with troubled eyebrows. Then with surprised eyebrows, eyes opening fast as he took a fast breath of air.
"Roxas!"
"Come on. Let's go," I tapped my watch and bit my lip as if I hadn't heard a thing and nothing had happened last night, lifting my eyebrows.
"Oh, Roxas!" he jumped up and hugged me tight. I pretended to be surprised, but of course I wasn't. Typical of Sora to give out a hug to the brother he was worried about. How sweet. Now let's get going.
"Hey! Hey! What happened? Are you okay?" I said in a frantic manner. I put my arms around him gently and took a hand to ruffle his hair. "Hey, it's okay. We'll talk in the car, alright?" I know I'm such a wonderful big brother when it comes down to it! Ha-HA!
Suddenly I saw a flash from the corner of my eye. What was that?
"Shit! Shit! Shit! Renje!+ Turn off the flash! Turn it off!" I heard a girl cry from the crowd of students. "Hurry!"
I looked around and noticed Kairi had left us and now a lot of younger girls were looking at us, some even had cameras. Some even had… nosebleeds? OH, GOD, NO! I quickly pushed Sora off my chest and he looked up at me, confused. Whispers were running around the swarm of high school students.
"I heard Sora had a brother, but who knew they were this close?"
"God, that is so hot."
"Who is that?!"
"AW! OHEMGEE! DAT'S ADORABLE!"
"Sora got a boyfriend?!"
"EEEEE! I can die happy now!"
"Let's go, Sora!" I grabbed his hand and sprinted through the throng of the student body as fast as I could. We reached the front door of the building and I quickly swiped up my arm to reveal my watch.
2:36:27 pm
I ran out to the parking lot, unlocking the door with the keys on the way. I approached the car and practically yanked the door off its hinge.
"Sora! Get in. We'll be late," I said, looking around the parking lot to find girls start to pour out of the front doors. What did they want?! I drove out of the parking lot calmly, though, so I wouldn't kill anybody, and we were on the road, heading home again.
oXoXoXo
"Popularity comes with a price," Sora shrugged as we stepped into the house. I walked to the refrigerator and took out a piece of chocolate mousse cake.
"Yeah. Even for their siblings… Here," I handed the plate to him. Nobody ate the crap the cafeteria served, so everyone usually ate something at home after school was over. In our case: A chocolate mousse cake. Sora loved his sugar, after all. Pulling open a drawer, I took out two forks and we sat down at the table. Art class didn't start for another 15 minutes, so I had time to spare. I always left the house exactly 5 minutes before class started and arrived at the teacher's house right on time. When we got home, we always ate something to replace the disgusting 'lunch' we had.
10 minutes wasn't a lot of time, so the heart-to-heart talk would have to wait for tonight. We hadn't talked in the car, because it had been kind of awkward and the distance between the school and our house wasn't long. I decided to get ready for class, and walked out of the kitchen, taking my own slice of cake with me.
As I stepped up the white marble staircase, I took bite after bite to ease my growling stomach. My hand slid up the banister of the grand staircase and I made my way up to the second floor. I slipped into my room and unbuckled my pants, kicking them off to the floor to reveal my checkered boxers. Putting the cake on the coffee table in the room, I slipped off my shirt and bent down to pick up my pants. I gathered the clothes and walked over to the hamper by the door, tossing them in and then sliding off my socks, throwing those, too, into the hamper. I turned around and opened the white doors to a large closet to pick out clothes for the rest of the day. Yes, I have an amazingly expansive wardrobe. Yes, I do change my clothes for the rest of the day. Yes, I do pick matching outfits. Deal with it. Sora says that it makes me gay, but I refuse to go along with that absurd idea of his. I just believe in the cleanliness of the body, is all.
Before I could take anything out, though, I saw something from the corner of my eye. I turned to the window and my eyes widened when I saw a face.
"AAAHHH! PERVERT! PEEPING TOM! DEBAUCHEE! FREAK!"
I jumped into my closet. I heard the window opening and a voice filled the room.
"Relax, Roxas. It's just me!" I heard a familiar voice say. "Your voice goes so high when you get scared," a chuckle emitted from…
I peeked out of the large closet to see Cloud.
"Oh, Cloud. Still makes you a pervert. What're you doing, sneaking into my room from the window? How'd you even climb all the way up here?! You know you can just use the front door. Or the garage door, for that matter. What's wrong with you? Freaked me out…"
"Ah, nothing. I was just trying something. I climbed up on your balcony and saw you changing. I had no idea. You should really keep your window, oh, I dunno… closed? When you start stripping?"
I grabbed a pair of pants from the rack beside me, putting them on without buckling up. Walking out of the closet, I kept my pants up with just one hand.
"Seriously, Cloud. I may have a mini 'fridge in here, but trust me, the one in the kitchen has a much bigger variety of foods," I pointed to the door. "Now get out of my room. I'm going to be late for my art class."
"Well, sheesh, pretty princess. Don't get your panties all up in a bunch. Oh, wait. I forgot you already did!" I pushed him towards the door. "Alright, alright. Just to warn you, though. I will be visiting via your balcony sometimes. It's lots of fun. Maybe I'll show Sora…"
"GET OUT, CLOUD!" I practically shoved him out into the hallway and slammed the door behind him. "Sheesh…" I muttered. I looked down at the pants I put on and decided they were fitting, so I zipped them up and went back into the closet to find a shirt.
oXoXoXo
"Oh, and did I mention, Roxas? That is just an ADORABLE pink shirt you have on! Oh, just precious, darling. Have a nice day, now! See you next week, dear," Ms. Yules sang as I walked out the door. She waved as I shut it and strode out to my car. Opening the door, I threw the black and white bag of art supplies into the passenger seat and situated myself in the driver's.
"Adorable?" I asked my bag. "Precious?" I shook my head and tilted the mirror to look at myself. I was wearing a light pink polo and crisp white pants, a little smudged from the pencil I was drawing with. A plaid black, white, and pink hat sat lightly on top of my blonde hair and a pair of large white-rimmed sunglasses rested on the bridge of my nose++. I slid the glasses down my nose slightly, peering at my reflection. Frowning, I stuck the keys in the car and backed out of her house. "I need to get a girlfriend," I told my art supplies. "Either that or a ginormous growth spurt. And we all know that isn't coming anytime soon."
I drove home and parked the car neatly outside the garage, knowing that one of the maids would handle it for me. I took of my sunglasses and strolled into the house.
"Sora? You home?" I asked loudly. Silence answered my call as I sat down on one of the kitchen stools. What a boring day… I wasn't in the mood for art today and my sketch wasn't progressing as quickly and smoothly as I had hoped. Today was just an off-day I guess with the whole, "Twincest moment" and the "Peeping-Cloud"… But one thing that had been on my mind since I had woke up this morning was an amazingly hot redhead I met the other day.
I admit it! He was hot! It's okay for a guy to say another guy is hot, right? I mean, girls do it all the time. Calling other girls pretty and stuff. Guys could do that, too. There's nothing wrong with it. I thought to myself. Right?
I sat at the table, hungry as hell, and called for our chef. "Glenn?!"
A petite, middle-aged woman rushed into the kitchen. "Yes, milord?"+++
"Could you cook me something fast, please? I'm famished. All I had for lunch was a piece of your chocolate mousse cake."
"Of course, milord. I'll set right to it. Some pasta, perhaps?"
"That sounds delicious. Thanks, Glenn. You're the best," I smiled at her and she turned around to do her job. "Oh!" I called after her, and she turned around and walked back into the kitchen. "Sora's not here right now so hang on. Let me call him to see where he is."
I extracted my cell phone from my pocket and speed-dialed Sora's number. It rang twice and then I heard his ring tone sound from his cell phone on the coffee table in the living room. What was the use of a cell phone if you didn't take it around with you? I sighed and shut my phone.
"Shall I make some for the both of you and save milord, Sora's, half for later?"
"Again, that would be great. Sorry to keep you waiting," I nodded and flipped open my cell phone again.
"Of course not, milord. I'm just doing my job, after all," Glenn scurried off to do her duties and left me in the empty kitchen to wait for dinner. I stared at my cell phone wallpaper of Sora and I sitting on the couch. Sora was taking the picture since I had no idea how to work the whole camera thing on my cell phone. I was never really good at all that tech-y stuff. I was frowning slightly, but still looking up into the camera lens while Sora was smiling brightly, his eyes barely visible above his cheeks. I placed my head in one of my hands and propped it up with my arm on the countertop.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.
"Here. This will come in handy in your time of need," Axel said as he folded the napkin and handed it to me.
Huh… I thought. He did give me his phone number didn't he…? Where did I put that damn thing…?
I rubbed a finger against my temple and closed my eyes. I got up off my chair and walked up the stairs again, and into my room. Oh, Phew. The hamper still has my clothes from yesterday. Thank God for some irresponsible maids. I dug through the hamper and pulled out the pair of pants I was wearing after meeting Axel. I checked the pockets and found the napkin in a back pocket. I unfolded it and read the number out loud.
"813-XXXX." ++++
I threw the pants back into the hamper and took the napkin downstairs again and into the kitchen. My stomach purred and I sat down again, opening my cell phone once more. I punched in a new contact and labeled it "Axel". I smiled to myself. Look at that. I made a new friend… kind of.
Should I call him? I mean… He did give me his number for a reason… I decided against it when I saw my pasta arrive and I dug in immediately. My stomach couldn't wait any longer. Not even for Sora.
For that time, my mind completely forgot about Naminé, Axel, Sora, and everyone else. This pasta was mine.
Yum.
oXoXoXo
THE NEXT DAY…
oXoXoXo
Yesterday I had learned how to climb into Roxas' room from the wall and balcony outside his window. Cloud taught me how and I was just dying to try it when Roxas had someone over… Hm…
"Class!" Ms. Jergen clapped her hands twice to get everyone's attention. She cleared her throat and began. There was a tall kid standing next to her, but I wasn't really noticing him much. He was turned so his back was facing the rest of the classroom. Kids turned from their conversations to look, bored, at the teacher. She smiled when she thought she had everyone's interest on her talking. "Class, I'd like to welcome a transfer student that just arrived today all the way from Destiny Islands."
I shot up and strained my ear to listen better. Destiny Islands? Like where Naminé moved to?
"Dear, please turn around and face the class," Ms. Jergen gently put her hands on the kid's shoulders and turned him to face us.
I looked at him, and in one split second, my whole world was turned upside down. I was thrown into frenzy. This kid had a healthy tan and beautifully toned muscled arms. He was skinny, taller than average, and well-built. As I looked as him, my breath hitched in my throat. His hair was a gorgeous silky silver color, cascading down his broad shoulders and covering his eyes partly. His eyes were a sea-foam green and his facial structure was chiseled yet soft and smooth. He was wearing an unzipped white vest with yellow folds over a sky blue tank top. A thin white sweatband of sorts slid down on his thin wrist as he turned around to look at the class. Under his tank top, he wore baggy grey pants that covered his white tennis shoes. He was standing a nonchalant fashion and seemed very relaxed and… cool.
He took my breath away.
"Everyone, meet Riku," Ms. Jergens swept a small hand towards said kid and I gasped inside.
Riku…
oXoXoXo
luluNOTE:
AHAHAHA! I tricked you all. I said Riku would come into play, but I didn't say nothing about what he'd do. Sorry if you guys wanted a little more Riku time. There'll be more Riku-luvin later on in the story, don't worry. At least I didn't leave you all with a cliffhanger! Those suck, so expect a lot of them. Just kidding. Maybe not.
Anyways, if you're really worried about the Axel and Roxas phone call, it's coming up soon. Now I can start getting into the actual story plot… Muahahahaha… Oh, and all the teachers… Sorry, but I'm not going to make them the older Orgy XIII characters, but don't worry about nobody being on school staff that you don't know…
"Oh, my! What's that mean?!"
Find out in the next chapter of Broken Clockwork!
Next Chapter: What's this?! Sora's fallen for the new kid, Riku? But wait… Is Riku just a love interest or competition for Sora? Is Roxas ever going to make that stupid phone call? Is Naminé going to make a revengeful comeback?
THANKS FOR READING Broken Clockwork!
The review button is your best friend!
oXoXoXo
References:
(+) - Renge is from the anime/manga Ouran High School Host Club
That little bit there was kind of like a little Ouran moment. If you've ever watched it before, you'll know why. If you haven't, it's because in the series there are two twins who are in the host club that 'attract girls by putting on a show of 'forbidden love' excessively'. And tons of girls love it. (including me XD) Yes. That's twincest for you. Haha… Don't worry, I don't intend on Roxas and Sora being a couple anytime soon… They're practically the same person in the game… Sorry for those of you who wanted it and sorry for those of you who didn't.
(++) - The clothes that Roxas are wearing is my little fantasy of Roxas wearing the clothes that Lucas Grabeel from High School Musical 1 & 2 (Ryan Evans) wears. I like High School Musical, so if you don't like it, don't be all Ew! That's such a preppy movie! Anyways – Lucas/Ryan is one of my favorite characters in the movie and I absolutely love, love, love the clothes he wears. Especially his hats which kind of look like those little artist hats, but not really. I think he dressed so incredibly stylish and gay, I can't help but imagine Roxas in those clothes, getting out of his sleek red Mustang, taking his sunglasses off… I added the white rimmed sunglasses in because I wanted Roxas to wear sunglasses. So sexy lol.
(+++) - Milord is also from the Ouran High School Host Club series. The two twins from (+) call Tamaki, the "King of the Host Club" milord simply because they believe he's the "Lord of Fools". I got this from Wikipedia, so don't ask. I really have no idea what maids call their… "lords" since I'm not especially rich or anything, but I do know they call them "Shao Yie" meaning something similar to "master" or "milord" etc. in the Chinese households for the rich. (Meteor Garden)
(++++) - Axel's phone number, "813-XXXX" starts with 813 simply because that's Axel and Roxas' two numbers. That was an easy one to understand, if not spot. I put XXXX for the last four digits since I don't want to make up a phone number… and blah. All that jazz.