Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in this story. At all.
Warning: Shounen-ai, homosexual relationships, etc, etc.
Author's Note: Woohoo! This story is moving on up in the world. Thank you PandaGaaraInsomniac9 for adding this story in your C2 (The Best of AxelRoxas). I greatly appreciate it!
I know what all of you are thinking and I'm really sorry about the delay. I got back from Texas and I had less than five days to pack and move into my dorm, do an interview for the school magazine, see my sister off to Japan for her study abroad program, and attempt to get a handle on my schoolwork.
Let me say this:
Updates are going to be slower (hopefully not that much slower). I've got a full schedule for school (17 hours) and I just got a job doing lab prep for the microbiology / genetics labs at my school. I'm going to try and stay on top of this story, but it may have to take the backseat at times.
Anyway, thank you for being patient and I hope the wait was worth it.
The italics in this chapter denote the past.
Summary: Axel thinks Aesop taught decent lessons in his fables, but the redhead is willing to bet he could do better. What good are fables that teach things like "attempt not impossibilities" or "little friends may prove great friends" anyway? Times are different from when Aesop lived and Axel thinks it's time for a new set of fables. All of which will be authored by himself, of course, because he's an expert on love, life, and what truly matters.
That, and Roxas Badcock promised to marry him if he gets his book published.
Axel's Fables
•••
•••
By: Freekiwi
V – He Claims "No Take-Backsies"
There was a sudden distance between them and Riku knew it was his fault. Axel had become exceptionally cool toward him ever since there small argument in the redhead's bedroom and Riku had done nothing to make things better between them. Part of him felt very entitled to keeping some things secret, but the other part of Riku knew how betrayed he would feel if Axel felt the need to hide things from him.
"Did you ever think that maybe Axel is annoyed because you flaunt the fact that you have secrets?" Roxas suggested, "I don't think he cares if you have secrets. I think he cares that everyone around him knows your secrets. Think about it. He's supposed to be your best friend, but people like Kairi and Naminé know more about you than he does."
Riku rolled his eyes, "I dated their brother. Whatever they know about me they probably know because of Sora."
Roxas shrugged his shoulders and sipped from his mug of coffee. Ever since their talk on the rooftop, he and Riku had begun spending more time together. They considered one another excellent resources for getting advice on their problems and they both had begun to realize just how similar in thought they were. They both failed to see why so many people adored Axel and they both agreed that Sora really should just admit he liked Riku or just move on.
"What are you trying to hide from him anyway?" Roxas frowned and set his coffee back down on the table. They were sitting at the bakeshop where Riku worked and the dreary Saturday morning had turned into a stormy afternoon. It was a slow day at the shop and Riku had requested Roxas drop by. They were attempting to hide their friendship for fear of what Sora might say. Both boys had convinced themselves that hiding their friendship was the safest, and smartest, thing to do.
"Nothing, I…" Riku leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, "I don't want him to know I slept with you."
Roxas fiddled with the handle of his cup and gave the other a scathing look. "Great. So I'm inevitably involved in this. Thanks." An eye roll accompanied his sarcasm, "What's the problem with him knowing exactly?"
"He's under the impression you're a virgin."
His dirty look increased.
Riku looked away, "I didn't say anything. He came up with that all by himself. He said it to me after you guys talked in the car."
Roxas breathed an irritable sigh through his mouth, "it's probably because I told him I didn't date. What a tool."
Riku shrugged, "He'd feel betrayed if he knew about us. You've never seen Axel upset, Rox—"
"What?" he passed the older boy the most indignant look he could muster, "Never seen him upset? Where have you been the last few months? Remember when I yanked his pants down? Remember when I told him I didn't like him? Remember when –"
"No," Riku sat up in his chair and leaned across the table, "really, really, seriously upset, Rox. I don't mean mad, I mean upset. He'll just disappear for days without a word and he'll ignore everyone he's pissed at. But then he'll do things like… like…" he paused briefly, "he'll be gone for days, but then you'll find your bathtub filled with gasoline and empty matchbooks."
Roxas stared at Riku with his mouth slightly open and his brows furrowed. "What?"
"Or you'll walk down the street and a car will drive by and you'll be shot at with a paintball or pellet gun four hundred times. He just… He can't know. Trust me… I know Axel well enough to know that he can't know about us." Aqua eyes stared at Roxas almost pleadingly and the blond looked away because he found his friend's look to be somewhat invasive.
"Fine," Roxas sipped from his mug, "it's not like I was going to tell him anyway. It's not really his business to begin with."
"Right." Riku relaxed and stood from his chair. "But what should I do about Axel? I want to tell him something so he knows he's my best friend."
"Tell him you're gay." The blond stood and stretched and then smiled when Riku playfully hit him. "Tell him anything. Just edit out what you don't want him to know."
"Yea…" he sighed softly and placed his hands in the pockets of his flour-covered apron. "And what about you? What are you going to do about him?"
Roxas shrugged and bent down to pick up his umbrella. "Be his roommate? He's with Demyx and… and he's not my type. Besides," he sighed, "he was willing to cheat on his boyfriend with me. Who's to say he won't cheat on me too?"
Riku wished he could defend Axel, but he knew better than to try. Maybe once the redhead had been a loyal lover, but he seemed pretty content hopping from person to person and ignoring the consequences of each and every flame he started. Axel had to be careful; things could spiral out of control and he could end up alone.
"I'll see you at home." Roxas buttoned his jacket and clutched his umbrella. "Bring home chocolate cake."
Riku offered a small smile as he watched the petite blond walk away. He had forgotten how much he liked Roxas. He had forgotten how much he and Sora looked alike. At one point Roxas and Sora had also been very similar in attitude and personality, but there was an obvious difference between them now. The vibrant, naïve personality Roxas had once possessed was trumped by the overwhelming and incorrect notion that everything he loved or cared about would be viciously taken from him.
Roxas had a wall up, but Riku was managing to worm his way in.
"Do you know Axel?"
The redhead's name snapped Riku from his thoughts and he turned his attention to a younger looking boy who had a large curtain of hair covering half his face. He had a booked tucked under his arm and a closed umbrella clutched in his hand and the way his lips curved into a smirk made Riku feel suddenly uneasy.
"Uh… Yea. Why?" He eyed the bookish-looking boy suspiciously.
"Oh. I just heard the name and it sounded familiar. I'm Demyx's roommate."
"You're Zexion?" Riku's lips curved into a handsome smile and he ignored the cold, contemptuous look the other boy gave him. "Sorry, it's just… Axel made you seem so much more… frightening."
"Seems he's not as stupid as he looks."
The smile dropped from Riku's features and he mirrored Zexion's cold look. "What do you want?"
"Nothing from you," a smirk crossed his features once more. "But perhaps your little blond friend should watch what he says. God forbid Demyx had been sitting here."
Riku looked at Zexion with confusion and before he could ask, the boy was already supplying an answer.
"Cheating. Axel cheated on Demyx. I heard what your friend said and it's going to cost Axel quite a pretty penny to keep me from telling. Would you pass the message along? I bet he'd love to hear how his two friends ruined his rela—"
Despite his calm demeanor, Riku felt extremely panicked when he reeled back and punched Zexion in the face.
••••••••••••••
"His phone has been ringing nonstop for nearly a month." Axel leaned against the doorframe to Riku's room and watched as his roommate's phone lit up and began to vibrate again for the tenth or eleventh time in a row. "I wonder…" a devious, catlike expression crossed his features, "who Cheeseburger is trying so hard to avoid."
Demyx watched his boyfriend walk into Riku's bedroom and he stood frozen at the doorway, a frown creasing his features. "Does it matter? Should you be snooping like that?"
"It's October, Demy. Riku's phone has been ringing off the hook like this since school started in September." Axel scooped up the phone as it began to ring again. The caller ID showed a number that he didn't recognize with an area code that was unfamiliar. "He's done nothing to stop the calls. No blocking them, no changing his number… If he really wanted to avoid this person, wouldn't he do more than just ignore them?"
"I guess, but…" Demyx frowned.
"But nothing. I bet I'm doing him a favor." Axel reassured his boyfriend. The phone began to vibrate in his hand again and his green eyes flashed to Demyx's face before he flipped open the phone and answered it with a pleasant "hello."
"Riku?"
Axel hid his mild shock. It was an older man's voice; something he had not been expecting. "This is his roommate. Riku –"
"Can you tell me where Riku is?" there was urgency in the man's voice. "I need to know where my son is."
"Your son?" Axel looked over at Demyx who shrugged his shoulders in response to his boyfriend's shock. "Are… Are you Cheeseburger's dad?"
"Cheseborough." He corrected unkindly. "Please... Please tell me where I can contact him or see him. I need to speak with him."
The redhead frowned, "Why's he been ignoring you?" He didn't expect an answer. He was merely thinking out loud.
"Just where he works or… or where he goes to school maybe." The urgency in his voice made Axel uncomfortable and he suddenly felt extremely stupid for answering his roommate's phone. He was being nosey. Way, way too nosey.
"Uhh…" He walked over to Demyx and passed him the phone, "Here. No take-backsies."
"Axel!" the blond gripped the phone, "I don't want it!" He shoved it at the redhead who put his hands in the air and refused to take it. "Axel!" Demyx whined and followed his boyfriend as he walked toward the balcony. "Take it back!"
"No, Dem, no take-backsies!"
Riku's father had begun to yell and both boys could hear his voice but not his words. Demyx made a face and Axel shrugged and hid his smile. Unsure of what to do and feeling absolutely panicked, the blond opened the balcony doors, made his way quickly over to the edge, and threw the cell phone as far as he could.
Axel stared with shock from the doorway.
"There." Demyx turned and leaned against the railing. "Problem solved."
Axel continued to stare, mouth agape.
"Now Riku will never know we talked to his dad."
"… Except his cell phone is smashed into pieces!" the redhead yelled, "What is wrong with you! Why didn't you just hang up?" Axel walked out onto the balcony and stared at his boyfriend with an exasperated look.
Demyx frowned and then glared. "I'm just trying to help!"
Axel stared at him with an indignant look.
Glaring, the blond gathered up an armful of nothing and then shoved it at Axel. "No take-backsies! This problem is all yours!"
For being dimwitted, Demyx wasn't half-bad when it came to retorts.
••••••••••••••
"So, just to make sure I understand this…" Sora paced the length of the downstairs living room slowly, passing back and forth in front of the two boys who sat on the couch. "You answered his phone, you gave the phone to Demyx, and Demyx threw it off the balcony."
Axel and Demyx nodded in unison.
"Why?" Sora stopped pacing and raised a brow. "I don't understand how this went from invading Riku's privacy to smashing his phone into pieces. Who was calling?"
They exchanged a look and then Axel breathed a sigh through his nose. "I can't tell you."
"Oh, well, I can't help you then." Sora shrugged and began to walk away, but Axel mumbled 'wait' under his breath. A smile crossed the brunet's features and he turned back to both of them and waited for an answer.
"It was… It was a family member. Can we leave it at that? I don't need Riku triple pissed at me because I nosed it on his life, broke his phone, and then told his ex who was calling him." Axel sighed irritably and leaned back against the couch. Demyx watched him with a frown.
Sora reached up to touch his chin thoughtfully. "If you tell me who was calling, I'll tell Riku I broke his phone."
The redhead perked up. "What? Really? You think he'll buy that?"
Sora nodded. "I'll just tell him I went upstairs to uh… I dunno… Get something and I heard his phone ringing and answered it. And then I'll tell him I was surprised at whoever it was and I dropped his phone in shock. Pretty brilliant, right?"
Demyx looked at Axel who stared at Sora with his mouth slightly agape and his brow furrowed. "That's awful. God, you suck at lying. Just tell him your phone was acting funny, but you needed to talk to Roxas so you used his phone. And then say you went outside to talk and you dropped it off the balcony."
The brunet shook his head. "He'll see through that. You suck at lying."
"No," Axel stood. "I'm a great liar. You're just mad because I made up a better story."
Sora glared, "No, I made up a better story. Riku won't believe anything that comes out of your mouth anyway."
"Oh, pft," the redhead waved his hand dismissively at Sora. "Like he believes anything you say?"
"Yes!" Sora stated unsurely. "I mean… At least he tells me his secrets!"
Jade eyes narrowed and Axel opened his mouth to retort, but Demyx stood and interrupted their argument.
"Let's just tell Riku the truth."
Sora and Axel both looked at the blond as if he'd just suggested they defecate in the corner of the living room.
"Are you crazy?" the redhead asked.
"You must not know anything about Riku!" Sora exclaimed.
All at once they began to argue and their argument began to grow in volume the more heated each person become. No one could agree on a course of action and their fight was only interrupted when the sound of the front door opening and closing caught their attention, causing them all to fall silent. They all stood in the living area like animals caught in the headlights and they waited until Roxas walked in through the entry way before picking up the argument exactly where it had left off.
"Oh hey, yea, I'm good. Thanks for asking…" Roxas mumbled to himself before retreating into his bedroom and closing the door with more force than he meant.
"If we lie, eventually he'll find out and he'll be even more upset!" Demyx argued. "Zexion always tells the truth and we've never fought!"
"Zexion is a troublemaking asshole. Don't believe anything he says!" Axel raged.
"We have to lie! Riku holds grudges! If we tell him Axel broke the phone, it could end their friendship!" Sora insisted.
"Whoa!" the redhead looked from Sora to Demyx and back again. "I didn't break his phone! My tool of a boyfriend –"
"Don't be a dick! You screamed 'no take-backsies' and refused to do anything about the problem you created!"
"That's the rules of 'no take-backsies'!"
Their argument continued and the volume it had reached was to a point where none of them heard the front door open and close and no one heard Riku's rushed footsteps. No one heard him yell 'hey' either and it wasn't until the fourth time he yelled that all three turned and looked at him, each with their own unique, guilty expression.
Riku was wet and hardly seemed to notice the shame in the living room. "Axel? Come with me?"
"Why?" the redhead hid his panic. "What do you know?"
"I – what?" he looked briefly bewildered. "Just come with me. I need your help." Aqua eyes fluttered to Demyx's face and Riku bit his lower lip. "Hey… Dem… Isn't it time you go home?"
"Oh, you know… Look at that! Sure is late!" Demyx shrugged and slowly backed out of the living room. "I'll uh… I'll call you later, Axel."
Confusion crossed Riku's features as he watched Demyx sprint from the foyer and out of the duplex. The question 'why is everyone acting so weird' crossed his mind, but he didn't bother asking. They had a bigger problem on their hands right now and he'd play detective later.
"Come with me," he grabbed Axel's wrist and pulled him from his spot in the living room. Sora had managed to inch away and sneak into his bedroom and the redhead seemed to be the only one still committed to somehow fixing this problem.
"What's wrong?" Axel asked as Riku yanked his best friend outside and pulled him over to his car. It was extremely overcasts outside and it was very cold.
"Don't tell Demxy." Riku opened the backseat of his car and Axel didn't bother suppressing his large grin when he saw Zexion tied up with tape over his mouth.
"You know… If this is your way of apologizing to me, then you really are a kickass friend," the redhead half-joked. "So… Why is he tied up?"
Zexion gave Axel a seething look, but he didn't move from his seat. His feet were tied and his hands were tied behind his back. The tape over his face had some red to it and upon a closer inspection the redhead realized Riku must've hit him.
"He knows about your uh… few moments with our blond friend." He ran his fingers through his hair. He didn't want to admit he had been hanging out with Roxas and he didn't want to admit it was Roxas who mistakenly spilled the beans.
"R—"
"Yea," Riku cut him off. Whether Zexion knew about Roxas he wasn't sure, but he certainly did not want the name getting back to Demyx. Eventually Demyx was going to find out about Axel's infidelity one way or another and it would be better for the young musician to assume it was his boyfriend and some unnamed blond kid. Not his boyfriend and one of his friends.
"So we'll cut his tongue out," Axel laughed at the momentary panic that crossed Zexion's features. "No, but really… What do we do with him?"
Riku bit his lower lip. "I don't know. He threatened to tell Demyx, so I panicked and hit him and then tied up and slapped some tape on his mouth. He's not much of a fighter."
Zexion glared at both of them.
Axel was smiling ear-to-ear. "What do you expect? Look at his little spaghetti arms. And he's only like four feet tall."
The blue haired boy was giving Axel the coldest, dirtiest look he could muster. He really had no idea what Demyx saw in the redhead.
"So, Zexy…" Axel leaned down and tore the tape roughly from the captive's face. "We can let you go and you can keep your yap shut or we can put more tape on your mouth and think of a way to keep you quiet."
"You don't deserve Demyx!" he spat, "I'm going to tell him everything once you let me go! He'll notice I'm missing! He'll file a police report!"
"Will he?" Axel raised his brows. "Ask yourself, Zexy… Will Demyx really be so concerned?"
A blush crossed his features and his cold look dropped in intensity. "I – of course!" he stated unsurely. "He's my –"
"Yea, best friend. I heard you the first forty times." The redhead rolled his eyes, "But that doesn't mean shit."
Riku felt a flush creep up the back of his neck and he looked away from Axel and Zexion. Whether the comment was aimed at him, he didn't know, but it made him feel uncomfortable nonetheless. Riku did not want to be the person who destroyed Axel's view of what a best friend was and was not.
"Of course it means something!" Zexion argued. "You obviously don't have a best friend if you think that."
Axel passed a somewhat impassive look to Riku and Riku immediately looked away from the redhead. He felt guilty, and having to see Axel's jade eyes filled with judgment only made him feel worse.
"Look," the redhead reached down toward Zexion's feet and began to untie the rope. "I know you're trying to be a good friend to Demyx, but you and I both know how badly it would hurt him to know what I did. I know you don't want to hurt him, Zexion."
He swallowed thickly and moved his feet. "Why should I trust you?"
"Because I'm letting you go," Axel began to untie the rope that bound his hands. "You're smart. You know I'm right. You know Demyx is crazy about me and you know any negative information about me, about our relationship, would just destroy him."
Once his hands were free, Zexion rubbed at the rope burns on his wrists. "So you're just taking advantage of him? You're going to just keep –"
"No," Axel stood, "I was being an asshole. Cheating on Demy was a mistake and I'm not… I'm not going to do it again."
Riku raised a brow and watched as Zexion stood from the car, dried blood smeared on his pale face. His eyes were fixated on Axel and there was a definite uncertainty there. Zexion greatly detested the redhead, but his care for Demyx was overtaking his want to harm him.
"Fine…" the blue haired boy looked away, "Fine, I'll let it go, but don't misinterpret this. I'm not doing this because I like you. I'm doing this because I care about Demyx. But the next time you screw things up –"
"Yea, yea…" Axel waved his hand dismissively and closed the door to Riku's car. Zexion passed them both suspicious, unsure looks before hesitantly making his way down their driveway and out of sight.
"What about the blood?" Riku looked up at Axel. "Won't Demyx ask?"
"It's my way of apologizing to Zex," the redhead leaned against his best friend's car. "Demy sees the blood, he takes care of Zexion, and Zexion gets to feel all special and important for a little while."
Riku stared at Axel with his mouth slightly open. "So… Have all your relationships been this fucked up or is this like a really special case?"
The redhead reached up to scratch at his head. "Actually… I think this is the most normal relationship I've ever been in."
••••••••••••••
"Has anyone seen my phone?" Riku yelled as he walked down the steps in the duplex. It had begun to rain very heavily and he had just been getting ready for bed when he noticed the absence of his cell phone. "It was on my bed!" He walked through the foyer and into the living room. "Hey, Sora, have you seen my phone?"
The brunet was sitting in the middle of the couch, eyes fixated on something that was occurring on the television. "Uh…" he glanced at Riku briefly. "Nope. Ask Axel."
"… He told me to ask you." Riku crossed his arms and gave Sora a look. "Okay, I get it. Haha. Joke's on me. Hilarious. Where's my phone?"
Sora suddenly stood from the couch and stretched. "Wow, it's late…" he grabbed the remote from the coffee table and shut the television off. "I really should get some sleep." He made a move to walk past Riku and into his bedroom, but the older boy placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Sora…"
"Yes?" he looked up at his ex with a look he thought to be fairly innocent.
"Come on, tell me… I need it," he frowned.
"You can just use mine!" Sora offered helpfully.
"Sora," Riku sighed. "What the fuck did you guys do with my phone?" he reached up to rub at his face. He was debating whether or not he really wanted to know. Knowing Axel, it was probably somehow hidden underneath the duplex and knowing Sora, it was probably sitting in a pile of pieces waiting to be glued back together.
"You know, Riku…" the brunet placed a gentle hand on his ex-boyfriend's clothed chest. "You smell like the bakery. It's nice."
"You're making me mad," Riku grasped the hand Sora had placed on his chest and tried to hide the little smile that was threatening to give him away. "The longer you stall, the more concerned I'm getting."
"I'm not stalling." Sora locked eyes with Riku and both boys felt the sudden heat between them. This was the closest they had been in a while and this was probably the nicest encounter they had had in a while. Sometimes they exchanged pleasantries, but mostly they ignored each other to avoid having to talk about their complicated relationship.
"You're bad at lying." Riku placed a gentle hand on Sora's cheek. "So… Are you going to tell me what you did with my phone or are you going to keep playing with me?"
"At this point," the brunet very gently and very briefly kissed Riku's lips, "it might be safer to just keep playing with you."
"Jesus…" he smiled somewhat, "I really don't want to know what the hell you guys did with my phone." He captured Sora's lips in a chaste kiss. There was so much unresolved tension between them. There was so much undeniable heat between them. The few soft, gentle kisses they were hesitantly sharing were slowly becoming more than just that. They became longer and needier and heavier.
They were completely absorbed in one another. Riku tangled a hand in Sora's mess of brown hair and Sora was gripping his ex's t-shirt and yanking him close. Their tongues collided and neither could deny the sudden shock of how good it felt. There was urgency in the way they kissed. There was urgency in the way they were suddenly holding each other. Their kisses were needy; their tongues crashed and collided and fought in a way that sent heat all over their bodies.
"Riku…" Sora pulled back slightly and looked up at his ex. He wore an expression that simply said too much; an expression that completely gave him away.
"Do you want to?" Riku felt his cheeks heat. "Am I completely misreading you?"
The brunet stared up at the older boy. He knew it was foolish to go along with him. Sora knew better than to tangle himself in Riku's web. But he also knew how much he had been denying himself. He was still in love with Riku and he had been trying to avoid this truth. He had been trying so hard to keep his distance.
"I want to." Sora ignored the fear he felt in his chest. "I want you."
Riku captured his ex's lips in a brief, warm kiss. Sora was his. Sora had never stopped being his.
"My room?" Riku pressed a kiss to the brunet's forehead.
Sora nodded and allowed himself to be taken away.
••••••••••••••
4 Years Earlier
"He's looking at me…" Sora sat at a table in the school library with his siblings. They had scheduled all of their courses together and they all were studying for the same class period. They did everything as a group. They were known as the Badcock Quadruplets and not really by anything else. They were referred to as one singular unit, not as individual people.
"How do you know he's not looking at one of us?" Kairi asked playfully. "How are you so sure it's you?"
"He could be looking at me," Roxas pointed out. "You're so self-centered, Sor," he teased.
"No, no… He's looking at me. Watch his eyes, okay?" Sora stood up from their table and walked over to a shelf of books. The other three Badcock Quadruplets surreptitiously glanced over at the silver haired boy and then back at Sora and, sure enough, he seemed to be looking at the brunet. Kairi and Naminé began to quietly chat with Sora when he sat back down, but Roxas looked away from his siblings.
The boy, the one who had been looking at Sora, caught Roxas's eye and smiled at him. A light blush tinted his cheeks and he quickly looked away. Roxas didn't have to see the handsome boy smirk to know he was doing it.
••••••••••••••
His lips touched every inch of skin on Sora's body. He was leaving no area unexplored. It was as if Riku was trying to memorize every inch of Sora's body. It was as if he was afraid the brunet would fade away after their moment together. Small sounds left the younger boy's lips with each kiss, each lick, each tender touch. He had forgotten how gentle Riku was. He had forgotten how safe he felt when he was with the older boy.
"Riku…" His fingers tangled in his silver locks of hair and Sora shuddered as Riku made little lines with his tongue along his stomach. He let a soft moan pass his lips when Riku kissed and licked his bellybutton. He writhed slightly when his ex reached his naked legs and began to delicately kiss his inner thighs.
This would never feel right with anyone else. Riku knew Sora better than he knew himself. They were two-halves cut from the same lump of clay. They belonged together.
"Y-you're teasing…" Sora whined as Riku only ghosted over his erection.
"Would you like it any other way?" he kissed the tip of Sora's erection and smirked in satisfaction when the brunet softly moaned.
"No…" he answered quietly, truthfully.
He loved the way Riku touched him. He loved Riku.
••••••••••••••
Roxas was standing outside the men's bathroom waiting for his brother. Kairi and Naminé had already gone home for the day, but Roxas and Sora stayed after school to practice with the soccer team. They had joined a sport at the request of their father, but Roxas would've been fine going straight home after school to be with his mother. She took at least two business trips a year and these trips lasted anywhere from a month to three months. These trips greatly bothered Roxas because it meant time without her.
"Hey."
He looked up and then quickly looked away when he noticed the boy from the library walking toward him. His hair was wet and he had a towel around his neck. He was wearing the school's swim team shorts and he walked straight over to Roxas.
"Are you afraid of me?" he smirked.
"My mother told me not to talk to strangers," Roxas responded somewhat playfully.
"Sounds like a smart woman. I'm Riku."
"I'm Roxas." He shook the other boy's hand and noted how aesthetically pleasing he was. "We saw you looking at my brother in the library."
"Are you sure?" Riku inched closer to Roxas and caught his eye, "How do you know I wasn't looking at you?"
Roxas blushed and immediately looked down at his feet. "Because we saw you look at him when he stood up and walked away."
"Yea, but..." Riku grasped the blonde's chin gently and made Roxas look at him. "I smiled at you."
••••••••••••••
Sora was beneath Riku and he was raking his nails down his ex's back. Small, needy moans left his pink lips as Riku pushed in and out of him in a gentle, rhythmic way. The brunet could not recall the last time he had felt this good. Being with Riku just felt right. Being like this with Riku felt even better. He clawed and scratched his way down the older boy's back and the small gasps that left Riku's lips only encouraged Sora's behavior.
Something told Sora Roxas would be pissed if he knew about this.
"Y-you're gonna l-leave marks…" Riku breathed shakily as he pushed in and out of the small boy.
"B-bad?" he breathed back.
Riku shook his head and leaned down to kiss Sora's neck. "No…" he traced the shell of his ex's ear with his tongue. "N-not for me."
Sora would have to ask him what he meant by that later.
••••••••••••••
"I think I like him."
"Who? Riku?" Roxas looked up from his English homework and frowned when he saw the dreamy expression that had overtaken his twin's features. They were in the library again, with Kairi and Naminé, and Sora was staring unabashedly at Riku. He was casting glances over at their table and when he waved, Sora would smile and look away.
"Yea," the brunet nodded. Kairi and Naminé smiled at each other.
"Do you think he'll ask you out?" Kairi leaned over her books and asked quietly.
"I hope so," Sora responded. "He keeps looking at me."
Roxas and Naminé exchanged a look and Roxas suddenly got the feeling that, even though he had never said anything, she knew Riku was looking at Roxas. He got the feeling that she knew what was really going on, what Roxas was hiding from them. He looked away from her quickly and tried to hide his guilty expression.
He didn't lie to his siblings. Aside from the private conversations he had with his mother, he told them everything.
"I'm gonna go look for a book." Roxas stood suddenly and quickly walked away from their table. Kairi and Sora began to talk amongst themselves about what a date with someone as handsome as Riku would be like and both failed to notice Riku slyly following Roxas into the depths of their large library. Naminé noticed. She wished she hadn't.
"My brother likes you," the blond felt the hair on his neck rise when Riku cornered him against a back shelf in the library. "Go after him."
"You two are different…" he stroked the back of Roxas's cheek with his hand. "I could make a life with Sora, but I could have a lot of fun with you."
Roxas blushed and looked away. "I think you're calling me a slut."
"I think I'm telling you you're cute."
His blush increased and when Riku went to touch his face again, Roxas gave him a slight push away. "Stop. I don't like you, Riku. Please stop…"
"You don't like the attention I give you?" he grabbed the blonde's hand and held it. "You're one of four, Roxas. You're a matched set. You're not even really your own person. You have a brother who looks just like you. Doesn't my attention make you feel special?"
Roxas felt his heart race in his chest. "No…" he lied.
"It's okay," Riku put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It's okay to like the attention. Isn't it hard being one of four? Isn't it hard when there are three other people who look like you? One person who looks just like you?"
"Riku…" Roxas frowned. "What do you want from me?"
He thought this over for a moment. "Kiss me."
"What? N-no, I –"
"Kiss me and I'll leave you alone. I'll ask your brother out. This can be our secret, okay?"
His heart raced in his chest and he looked at Riku with fear in his eyes. "W-why do you want to kiss me?"
"Because I like you," Riku smiled kindly. "Because you're adorable and I think it's sweet you care about your brother so much. Have you ever been kissed?"
Roxas shook his head.
"God, you're cute." He cupped the blonde's cheek and kissed his lips briefly.
Roxas would've been lying if he said he wanted Riku to stop. He was gorgeous. He was flirtatious and he was funny and he was gorgeous and he liked Roxas. And Roxas… Roxas was giving him up because Sora liked him. Roxas was giving up this seemingly perfect human being because he cared about his brother.
"A-again?" the blonde breathed nervously. "Practice makes perfect." He pointed out.
Riku laughed gently and captured the younger boy's lips in a perfect, crush-inducing kiss.
••••••••••••••
He had Sora wrapped tightly in his arms. They were both sweaty and hot, but extremely satisfied with what they had just accomplished. Riku's chest rose and fell in long, deep breathes and Sora's breathing was quick. The brunet could feel his ex's heartbeat against his back and he found this extremely comforting and he wasn't sure why.
"Riku?" he gripped his lover's hands.
"Yea?" he pressed little kisses to Sora's shoulders. "Are you okay?"
"Yea," he replied. "Do… Do you remember our first kiss?"
A little smile lined his lips and he nuzzled his face in Sora's messy locks of brown hair. "I remember everything about us."
The brunet smiled to himself and he noted he felt extremely relaxed in his Riku's arms. They were meant to be like this. It was unreasonable to think otherwise. They fit together so perfectly. They were two pieces of the same puzzle.
"Sora?"
"Hm?"
Riku hesitated, "I love you."
Without a second's thought Sora responded, "I love you too."
They had never stopped loving each other.
••••••••••••••
"Disturbing the peace, littering, and kidnapping. You're lucky I'm only ticketing you. I could arrest you for kidnapping a minor."
"He's not a minor!" Axel yelled in fury. "He just looks like he's twelve! And I didn't even kidnap him! It was my idiot of a roommate!"
"What does it say at the top of your ticket?" Officer Leonhart asked, "Will you read it for me?"
The redhead looked at the ticket and felt his blood boil. "It says Axel."
"Mhm… And what's the last name?"
He hesitated before saying, "I'm the only Axel around here. Do I really to say my last name out loud?"
"So long as you know the ticket has your name at the top, so you obviously committed the crime." Officer Leonhart wrote something down in his ticket book and it took all of Axel's will-power not to snatch the book from him and beat him senseless.
"I didn't do it though! You could write my name on ANY ticket and fine me out the ass!" he crumpled the tickets in his hand and threw them on the ground.
"Tsk, tsk…" Office Leonhart shook his head. "Littering AND defying an officer."
Axel felt his face heat with rage. "You already GAVE me a ticket for littering!"
"That was for the broken cell phone we found in your neighbor's backyard," he replied coolly as he wrote two more tickets.
"How do you even know that came from my house?" He felt completely exasperated at this point and he knew that if Officer Leonhart didn't leave, he'd end up in jail for assaulting a cop.
"I have my sources." He ripped the two tickets from his book and handed them to Axel. "I hope you've learned your lesson. Maybe I won't have to stop by here again. You have thirty days to pay your outstanding fines or I'll be back here to haul your ass off to jail."
Axel slammed the door as soon as Officer Leonhart had walked away. The tickets he had crumpled and thrown on the ground were scooped up and crumpled up again with the two new tickets he had just received. Outraged by the tickets and fines that weren't really his fault, he stormed up the stairs of the duplex and walked into the living area.
"Riku!" he yelled as he walked over to his roommate's bedroom. Axel didn't bother to knock and, instead, shoved the door open. "I just got FIVE tickets and you have to pay for ha—" a blush crossed his cheeks and Sora and Riku, who had been sleeping, looked up at the redhead with tired expressions.
"Uh…" he made a face, "Sorry." The redhead slowly backed out of the room and closed the door. He stood at the doorway momentarily before dropping his tickets to the floor and running from the upper portion of the duplex to the lower portion. He ran into the foyer, through the living room, and stopped only when he was at Roxas's bedroom door.
It was early Sunday morning, around eight. Axel had been awoken by Officer Leonhart banging on their door and now, after catching Sora and Riku in bed, he had to tell Roxas. Surely this was news to him.
Without knocking, he walked into the bedroom and rushed over to his duplex-mate's bed. He was sleeping, half-dressed and looking peaceful, and Axel threw himself down on the bed, causing Roxas to jolt awake.
"Ah – Axel!" he sat up suddenly, clearly frightened by Axel's proximity to him and the creepy smile that lined the redhead's features. "What… Jesus – what?"
"Guess what, Zombie!"
Roxas blinked hard and then rubbed at his eyes. "What?" he lied back on the bed and sighed. He stared up at the ceiling and then glanced over at the clock to see what time it was.
"Guess who I just saw in bed together."
The blond gave the redhead a look, "You're weird."
"It was Sora and Riku!"
Shock passed his features, but he quickly covered it with an impassive look. He turned on his side, away from Axel, and then mumbled, "So? Big deal. Talk to me when you have something interesting to say."
"Hey, come on…" the redhead placed a hand on the blonde's arm. "Roxy, what's wrong? Isn't this good news? There was some serious sexual tension between them."
"I don't care," Roxas replied much more roughly than he meant. "Leave me alone."
His brow furrowed and he took his hand away from the younger boy. "Fine, Zombie. You're uncool anyway."
Annoyed, Axel slipped from the blonde's bed and left the room. He shut the door somewhat forcefully when he left, but he couldn't help it. He couldn't even deliver good news without Roxas getting his underwear in a bunch. Did he really detest Axel that much? Was he really so bothered by the redhead? A sigh left his lips as he trudged into the kitchen for some breakfast.
Roxas, however, was left trying to figure out why he suddenly felt so hurt. He was left trying to reason through why it felt like someone had just squeezed his heart until it popped.
••••••••••••••
"I have my date with Riku tonight," Sora stated enthusiastically. He was primping himself in front of the mirror in their joint bathroom. Roxas sat on the edge of the bathtub watching as Sora attempted to do something with his insane mess of brown hair. "I didn't think he was going to ask me out."
Roxas shrugged. "You just had to give him time. Maybe he was trying to sort through some personal stuff." He breathed deeply through his nose and watched Sora attempt to pat down one of the many cowlicks that plagued his head of chocolate-brown hair. "He's weird."
"What do you mean?" He looked over at his twin.
"I… I just mean he…" Roxas looked away. "I don't know. He just seems weird to me."
Sora shrugged. "What should I wear?"
"Something to bring out your eyes." Roxas stopped himself from saying 'because he likes boys with blue eyes.' "Is Mom around?" The blond stood from the edge of the tub and made his way to the bathroom door.
"Yea. She's in her room."
Roxas nodded and left the bathroom without a word. He walked down the hallway, down the steps, and then he made his way to his mother's room, ignoring Kairi and Naminé who were playing some kind of game on the dining room table. The door to his mother's room was open and she was standing in front of her full-length mirror, putting on make-up and wearing a very beautiful dress.
"Where are you going?" Roxas couldn't cover the hurt in his voice.
Immediately, she turned her full attention to her son. "What's wrong?" her eyes were wide with concern. "Why are you upset?"
He closed her bedroom quietly and made his way to her bed. Their father was gone, some kind of business related thing, and Roxas preferred things this way. His father often noted that his son was nothing more than a "mama's boy" and he frowned upon how Roxas went to her for everything. He found it very unfitting for a boy his age.
But Roxas was only almost fifteen.
"Sora's going on a date." He laid face-down on her bed. "With a boy that I like."
"Oh, Roxy…" she frowned and walked over to him. She sat on the bed and began to gently rub his back in a soothing manner. "Does he know you like this boy?"
Roxas shook his head. "But I know the boy likes me."
He heard her breathe a gentle sigh through her nose. She was thinking of what to say next. Roxas tended to be extremely fragile and his mother, knowing Roxas did not tell his siblings what she said to him, often told him he was her favorite. She filled Roxas with ideas about his status with her. She made him believe that he truly was more important than his siblings because he was his mother's favorite.
"What aren't you telling me?" she asked gently.
Roxas frowned. "I knew Sora liked him, but he kept coming to me, Mom. I told him to ask Sora out. It just… Sora liked him first and I didn't want to take that from him."
She ran her fingers through his hair. "That's a very loving thing you did for Sora, Roxy… Unfortunately, sometimes when you act selfless you end up getting hurt."
Roxas buried his face in her blankets. "It's not fair."
"Life's not very fair sometimes," she said not unkindly, "but you'll end up getting rewarded for the nice things you have done for others."
He didn't say anything. He enjoyed the way she ran her fingers through his hair. He enjoyed the way her voice soothed and comforted him. He liked knowing that he could talk to his mother about anything and she would never judge him. He would always be her favorite.
"Do you know what I love about you most, Roxy?" she cooed. "I love how much you care about others. Even when you were little, you were always taking care of your siblings. If someone dropped their ice cream, you would give them yours. If someone broke their toy, you would try and put it back together. You're a good brother, Roxy, and you're a good son."
He sighed gently and found he felt mildly better about the situation. It was nice knowing how much his mother appreciated him and it was nice knowing she thought him to be the most caring and giving out of all his siblings.
"I know you like this boy," she said, "but I'm willing to bet there's a boy out there who's fifty times better."
Roxas smiled somewhat, "Yea, right."
"I bet he's thirty times more handsome. I bet he's witty and funny and everybody loves him. I bet he's absolutely crazy in love with you and he'd climb to the highest mountain top if it meant he got to be with you."
The blond rolled his eyes, but smiled nonetheless. "How will I know it's him? How will I know this is the guy I'm supposed to be with?"
"He'll know the magic word!" she replied enthusiastically.
Roxas looked up at his mother, "Please?"
"No," she laughed, "he'll call you by that special name I gave you without you ever even telling him about it."
His brows furrowed for a moment in thought. "He'll call me Roxy?"
She nodded and smiled, "That's how you'll know."
Author's Note: This chapter is somewhat shorter by about a thousand words. THIS IS NOT BETA-EDITED. I wanted to get this posted so I'm being a tool and not having it beta-edited. Please just excuse any minor errors (typos, punctuation issues, etc).
AGAIN – I'm really sorry this was late! I'm going to seriously really try and update once every three-four weeks. Generally I update once every two weeks, but school is a bummer.
So… There you have it. Some flash backs, some foreshadowing, some Sora x Riku lovin'.
PLEASE NOTE, the time frames in this story are approximations. I hate having characters say things like "yes, it was exactly five years, three weeks, two days, and twenty hours ago" sooo the time frames aren't exact. Their mom died three and a half to four years ago (as time moves in the story, so does this date) so Roxas and his siblings were like 15-16 (going by the assumption they're all 19-20 now).
Does anyone else here hate math?
Expect another update late September to end of September. I might just make the chapters shorter to push them out faster. I'm not sure yet.
The next chapter we'll see what Riku does about his phone, how Sora reacts to Riku's mysterious caller, and take an unpleasant stroll down memory lane.
Thanks for your patience and thanks for reading!
Thank you for Reviewing:
Sana-chan9: I'm from Russia originally, but I moved to America years and years ago. I know that game, but only because one of my friends showed it to me. It's kind of fun…? Hahaha. That's the dirtiest name ever. I bet that shit wasn't an accident either. There's no way someone thinks 'Slickwoody' and 'Cornhole' can go together without sounding filthy.
AdiosCiaoCiao: Thank you kindly. I actually meant for this story to wrap-up in about five to seven chapters. I don't see that happening. This story will probably end up being ten to twelve chapters (still short by fanfiction standards).
Starxsoleil: Aw, thanks. The interactions between some characters are really hard to write. Riku and Roxas are particularly difficult because I want their relationship to come off as somewhat strained without being awkward. Right now I feel like it's too awkward. Oh well.
Sensory Overload: I really hate the way people portray Naminé in most stories too. I see Kairi as somewhat girly, but not Naminé. She seems more… artsy and quiet. Not giggly and shy. I think her quietness makes people portray her as shy, but I think her quietness is more of a lack of something to say. That's just my opinion though. I was thinking about doing a flashback for the whole Roxas x Riku x Sora thing. I think that story deserves to be fully played out.
EggPanPockyMan: Oh, thanks! I usually write those small pieces in to avoid writing "he said blah blah blah and then she said blah blah blah" a whole bunch of times. I try to break up the dialogue a little bit because I loathe swimming in a sea of dialogue. The dialogue-sea is only made worse when the author forgets to write 'Roxas said' or 'Axel yelled' or whatever. Very irritating trying to keep track of who said what.
Khuronji: I think I prefer Axel as gay for only Roxas. I really needed to develop the softer, more sensitive side of Axel. He was beginning to seem really one dimensional and I really wanted to incorporate his whole artist thing.
TopHatGlow: Yea, shanking is way cooler when it means stabbing someone with a bar of soap carved into the shape of a knife. I prefer that definition as well. My writing loves you back and not in the sappy way that crappy romance movies portray (-gag- Dear John), but in a way that can only be described like this: if my writing could get you pregnant, it would not bail on you and your baby. I'm pretty sure that's love.
SitarLover: You know… I was really afraid of them sounding stupid. They're not too difficult to write, but sometimes the moral will conflict with the actual story (and sometimes the moral just doesn't fit the fable at all. That's me not paying any attention). I'm glad you like this story so much. Definitely a day-brightener.
Wings of the Valkyria: This analogy KILLED me. I rewrote it like seven times because I couldn't figure out how to make it make sense with the rest of the dialogue. And sometimes I got WAY too literal with it and it was like "and then your skin burns off and you have to go to the hospital for skin graphs and then you're forever deformed and no one will ever love you… err, what were we talking about? Oh yea! Love.. It's uh… It's cool." I hate drawn-out analogies. It's so hard to stick to the point.
AkakoChiYuki: This update is late. I feel like a lazy jerk. On the upside, you've just read (or you're going to read) the most recent update! Huzzah!
RennyWasHere: I wanted to integrate Naminé more into the story and I wanted to introduce the artistic side of Axel. What a better way to do it than putting the two of them together? I keep feeling like I should put Kairi in the story more, but it's so hard to write for more than two or three characters at once. When I was writing Axel, Dem, Roxas, and Riku together waaaay back in chapter 2, I was having trouble coordinating everyone's movements and I kept forgetting who was in the scene. Again, just more laziness on my part.
I'm actually stalking you. I know your schedule and I update on the days you're busy. ;] Just to torture you a little bit.
Heartless-lover12: You know… I'm pretty surprised at the amount of people who don't like Axel x Roxas. I really adore the pairing, but it seems a lot of people really don't care for it. I'm glad there are other couples / pairings in this story because I really don't think it'd be as popular if it was solely Axel x Roxas. And fiiiiinally. Another person who likes the long chapters. I was beginning to think all of three to four people enjoyed the long chapters.
Daydreamishly: The irony in this is that you're not first this time.
Twilighter21: I like an embarrassed Axel. He's always depicted as suave and cool so I like showing his more vulnerable side. I like my Roxas as cold as ice and my Axel as hot and as vulnerable as fire. The book cover was really, really hard to describe. I really think I suck at describing pictures (because I either cram too much detail in so it's confusing or I don't add enough so it's not satisfying). This chapter is probably one of the only chapters I'll be describing pictures.
Animearlinefreak: I agree. I think the main reason for the lack of reviews (though I do have quite a few) is because of the main pairing in this story. I don't think a lot of people care for Axel x Roxas (which is fine. Axel x Demyx is not my cup of tea, so to each his own). There are a lot of favorites / alerts for this story which is really fantastic, but I do like seeing the reviews. I love feedback probably more than I love myself (that's saying something. I love myself to pieces).
It's debated whether or not Aesop himself was real, but the fables were real and were said to be written by Aesop when he was a slave (he was Greek or Roman, but I'm going to go with Roman because he spoke Latin. Don't quote me on that though). The fables in this story were written by me, but google Aesop's fables sometime. They're quick reads and there are about a billion of them.
Vithian: It's really hard to be original on here now. There are so many stories and so many plots and the thing is… even if the plots are tired and old, people will gravitate and read the same stories that deal with high school or pregnancy or drugs or whatever other stereotypical crap goes on in these American high schools nowadays. I'm not saying those types of stories can't be good, but people definitely tend to hit up these stories way more than others.
I hate an extremely naïve Roxas. It bothers me. He never really struck me as naïve with the exception of the beginning of Days for the DS. I draw aspects of his personality from Kingdom Hearts II because he's spunky and cocky and he's stubborn. It's the same with Axel. I hate the flirtatious, but all-around good guy that people portray Axel as. Axel's not a good guy. If he cares about someone, he'll probably do whatever he can to keep them around / happy. And if he doesn't, he'll probably do whatever to make himself happy. Like cheat on Demyx with Roxas because Roxas is what he actually wants.
Err… that's what I think. End rant.
JustSayNoToPants: Thanks! I do try to keep the characters, well, in-character, but the more I write (and the more people review), I notice keeping a character "in-character" is really just how you perceive that character. Some people perceive Roxas as naïve, others don't. Some people perceive Axel as a bad guy, others don't.
The personalities and attitudes of the characters are something important in this story particularly because I don't like people who write their characters as "all good" or "all bad." It's not the way people are. I mean… You learn from this chapter that Roxas gives up Riku so Sora will be happy, but then you already know that later on, Roxas forces himself on Riku. I appreciate these small differences particularly because I feel it gives each character depth. Also, one dimensional characters piss me off.