I didn't bother trying to text Axel the next day. He blew up my phone and Cloud and Tifa had told me that he stopped by a few times, but I just couldn't bring myself to talk to him. That's why I was dreading the next day of school.

Honestly, I didn't want to go. I was still feeling like shit from the past Friday, but I mostly just didn't want to talk to anybody. I tried to convince Cloud to let me stay, but he wouldn't hear of it. Oh sure, now he decides to care about my education. Lovely.

I walked into the building, glad Xemnas was nowhere in sight. He either got suspended, which I highly doubted, or he was just afraid of Axel. I was going for option two.

Zexion had apparently stayed home, but Demyx was there. Along with Axel. They were by Axel's locker, and Axel looked really troubled. I was probably the cause. Unfortunately, my class was right by Axel's locker. Oh, this should be fun.

"Roxas!" Axel said, a smile quickly appearing on his face. Might as well get it over with.

"Hey, Axel…" I half-heartedly greeted, walking up to him and Demyx.

"What happened yesterday? I tried to talk to you all day but you never answered."

"I had a really bad headache and ended up sleeping all day," I easily lied. When you go through a life like mine, lying becomes almost as easy as speaking itself.

"How've you been feeling since then, anyway, Roxas?" Demyx asked.

"I could be better," I shrugged. "Zexion still not feeling too well?"

"…He started throwing up last night… I don't know why, but he can't seem to keep anything but water down. I called the doctor again and he said it's probably some form of post-traumatic stress or something…" Demyx explained, not making eye contact with either of us.

Normally, I wouldn't give two shits about this. But considering this basically happened because of me, I was feeling really guilty. Zexion didn't seem like the type that would be as strong as me with this kind of stuff. Then again, nothing this bad has ever happened to me, either. I'm surprised I haven't gone through some sort of panic attack…

"Damn, do you think he'll be okay?" Axel asked.

"I sure hope so… I haven't slept all weekend, I'm so worried…" Demyx sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Just then, the bell rang, signaling the students to hall their tired, coffee drinking butts to class. We parted ways, me more grateful not to have to talk to Axel anymore.

Ever since I learned about Ventus and had that dream, I've had a bad feeling about Axel. I had debated about confronting him about it, but I knew that would do me no good. Right now, the only thing I had to live for was the truth; and that wasn't going to come to me till the end of the month.

Wait, what am I thinking? Isn't this just a perfect opportunity to end it early? I could just get what I wanted from Axel, then go on to peace. So… what was stopping me?

The rest of the week was actually pretty quiet. There was not much of a distraction from the Douche Patrol and Zexion even came back to school on Wednesday. Axel could tell I was distancing myself from him a bit more, but he didn't approach me on the subject and I was grateful for that. All in all, it was a pretty quiet week.

Except for the constant nightmares.

Every night that week, I had a nightmare about Ventus's death. I knew it was Ventus, but for some reason, it always seemed to be me that was killed. I stopped trying to figure out which one of us was getting killed at some point. Unfortunately, I had them every time I tried to fall asleep. So, I haven't slept in a week.

I never cared much for myself before, and I sure as hell wasn't gonna start now. Then again, my tiredness was starting to catch up with me. My head was constantly pounding and my eyes burned with exhaustion. Forget about focusing in class, I had enough trouble staying awake. I couldn't afford to fall asleep, though. I just had to deal with this for two more weeks and then it would end. But, of course, my boyfriend's an observant bastard.

"Roxas, what the hell is going on?" Axel asked out of the blue during lunch.

"Huh?" I was so out of it. I had zoned out and was playing with the straw from my juice box.

"You've been out of it for days and you look like you're about to pass out on the fucking table. Is something going on that I should know about?"

"No, nothing really. Just been staying up to work on a project, that's all," I said, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. God, I really did have lying mastered, didn't I?

"…You're staying the night tonight," Axel stated.

"What? Axel, I can't just – "

"You can and you will. I'll stop by your house so you can get some clothes and such, but you are staying the night." By Axel's tone, I knew there was going to be no point in trying to argue with him. That and I was far too tired to try. So I just gave in.

"What do you want for dinner, Roxy?" Axel asked as we dropped out bags off in his room.

"I dunno, you pick," I answered, sitting down on his bed and pulling out my laptop.

"What're you doing there?" Axel asked, taking a seat next to me on the bed.

"Doing a little more research for my project," I said, pulling up my browser. Before I could type in some history bullshit, Axel closed my laptop and tossed it on a pile of blankets he had at the foot of the bed.

"Axel, what're you – " And then he wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me down on the bed with him.

"We're gonna take a nap," he stated. "And don't even try to argue, cuz you're not gonna win. I'm not stupid, Roxas. You need sleep and I'm going make damn sure you get it." God, am I ever even going to get a chance to argue with this guy? I was scared that I was going to have another nightmare, and I didn't want to have to explain those to Axel, but I was already falling asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I felt Axel pull a blanket over us and whisper something in my ear before I passed out.

I woke up a few hours later, around eight or so, and Axel was gone. I debated going back to sleep, but I was slightly curious as to where he went. So I dragged my tired ass out of bed and walked downstairs to see Axel in the kitchen.

"Hey, Axel," I said, rubbing some sleep out of my eyes and yawning.

"Hey there, Sleeping Beauty. What're you doing up?" he asked, setting a bowl down and coming over to place a small kiss on my cheek.

"I was hungry," I said, realizing that I actually could go for food.

"Well that's good, cuz I was in the middle of making some," he smiled, returning to his bowl.

"What're you making?" I asked, looking at all the laid out foods on the counters.

"Spaghetti, salad, and garlic bread," he smiled.

"I love Italian. Can I help?"

"Sure. Those vegetables need to be washed off, if you wouldn't mind."

I looked over and saw a variety of veggies spread out by the sink. I washed my hands and washed them off and by the time I was done, Axel had traded foods with me. I strained the spaghetti noodles while he cut the vegetables up and threw the salad. When all that was done, the garlic bread came out of the oven and the sauce was done on the stove. Axel grabbed out plates and forks for us, telling me to just grab what I wanted and meet him on the couch.

"Wanna watch a movie?" Axel asked from the floor, where he already started tearing through his first piece of garlic bread.

"Sure," I said, taking a seat next to him on the floor and setting my plate on the coffee table.

"Shrek okay with you?" he asked, standing up and searching through a bookshelf with multitudes of movies on it.

"That's fine," I shrugged twirling the spaghetti around my fork. He put the movie in and we pretty much zoned out as we ate and watched the movie.

After that, we cleaned up the leftovers and just decided to lounge on the couch. Axel trapped me in his arms, me practically in his lap as we lay there. About half an hour past before I started dozing off. Axel's breathing had evened out, so I thought he was asleep, too. Until he broke the silence.

"Roxas, you awake?"

"Mm?" I mumbled, really comfortable and not wanting to move or open my eyes.

"I just realized you never told our parents you were staying here. Come to think of it, you didn't do it last weekend, either. Aren't they going to wonder where you are?"

"No, not really…" I muttered, still trying to fall asleep.

"How come?"

"I'm not home during the weekend, anyway."

"Where do you go?"

"…" I came out when I was in middle school. That's when the bullying and such started. Every weekend, I would run away and hide out at Zack's house. We lived in a different city at the time, so I had to take a bus, but it was worth it. I had my own room there, but Zack never knew I was there because I would sneak in through the window. During the day I would wander around, mostly hiding out at the library. For the first month or so, Cloud and Tifa worried their asses off looking for me. One weekend, they just stopped. Even after I moved here, I kept up my little run away. It was the only time I had to myself, really.

"Roxas?" he asked, snapping me out of it by sitting up. Dammit.

"I don't stay home on the weekend. I just… like having alone time," I summarized.

"Oh… is… is me making you stay here cutting off that alone time?" Axel asked, sounding a little worried of my answer.

"No… actually, this is a lot better…" I admitted. God, my words and thoughts just don't seem to match anymore.

I don't want anything to do with Axel. But at the same time, I feel like I can't leave him alone. Am I just using him? Is that what I'm doing? I mean, as soon as I get what I want from him, I'm just gonna turn around and do what he seems to be trying so hard to prevent. God, I'm such an ass… What am I doing, really?

"Really?" Axel asked in partial disbelief.

"Yeah," I smiled. He sat up a bit more, me almost falling off his lap, but he caught me. He grabbed my chin, pulling my face closer to his before he closed the space between us. We separated a moment later and I was frozen.

"Roxas?" I let out a breath I didn't full realize I was holding and blinked a few times.

"O-Oh, I just wasn't expecting that." I could feel the blood rushing to my face as I blushed. Axel chuckled, resuming our position of lounging on the couch. I rested my back against his chest and before I knew it, I fell asleep.

I don't know how long that lasted until I felt Axel sit up again, setting me in his arms. He could tell I was waking up, so he shooshed me and told me just to go back to sleep, which I happily did. It wasn't until the next morning when I woke up again. I sat up and took notice of the fact that I was back in Axel's room and that said red-head was passed out next to me on the bed. I also noticed something else.

I didn't have a nightmare.

I didn't dream at all, as a matter of fact. That was a first. But why didn't I? After going almost a whole week with them, I was starting to pretty much expect them. So what made them stop? It couldn't be… It wasn't because I was with Axel, was it? I mean, the nightmares were sort of about him. At least, I thought they were. They were always kind of fuzzy, and the only faces I could ever clearly make out were Ventus's and my own. But that seriously couldn't mean anything… could it?

I stayed the night again at Axel's before going home Sunday night, where I was yet again haunted by nightmares. Not like I didn't expect it. School Monday was most definitely going to be hell, though.

The week before, I noticed as I fell asleep though most of my classes, that the nightmares only happen when I'm in a certain place. Yeah, I don't get it, either. Anyway, I was in my English class the next time I passed out and had a nightmare. Axel and the Douche Patrol were both in that class with me.

"Mister Strife!" the teacher shouted, jerking me awake in my seat.

"Don't hurt him!" I shouted, waking up from a nightmare. In the middle of class. Fuck. The class erupted in laughter at my outburst, Seifer leading them. Axel just gave a worried and confused look.

"Class, calm down," the teacher instructed. The laughter died down, but my embarrassment didn't. "Mister Strife, this is the third time I have caught you sleeping in my class. One more time, and I'm going to have to give you detention."

"Yes, ma'am." And with that, she went back to teaching. Later on in class, she had us split into pairs to do a worksheet. Axel, of course, paired with me. Seifer, of course, didn't fail to notice.

"So, Rocks-ass! Why're you so tired? Overworking the whore business? And on a school night, too! You have no shame," Seifer taunted, obviously he and Saix choosing the seats next to Axel and I. Xemnas, however, chose seats on the other side of the room.

Axel's fists tightened as he restrained himself, but he still mouthed the words 'ignore him' to me. That's exactly what I planned on doing. Then again, Seifer made it hard to do so. Where he got the balls to come up to us, I'll never know. Especially now, since he hadn't even bothered to look at me for a week.

"Not even going to deny it? Damn, I knew all you fags just liked it in the ass. Apparently you more than others, eh?" Saix was chuckling the whole time while Seifer started poking me, trying to get a reaction out of me. Anger was rising quickly in me, but I was determined not to stoop to his low level. "Hey, Rocks-ass, how much do you go for? Maybe twenty bucks a night? I might know some people who have some steam they need blowing off and a cheap piece of ass like you is just what they need." Okay, that's it. I planned on popping him in the jaw and going off on him, but Axel beat me to it.

He stood up, slapping Seifer straight across the face. The sound of his hand meeting Seifer's face resonated throughout the room, sending it into silence. Axel never stood out in class, and just now, he crushed that streak. Even the teacher was shocked.

"Shut the fuck up, Seifer! Stop acting like you know everything about a person, cuz you don't! You have no right to say that to anyone and you don't have the right to tease someone for their sexuality! Has someone being gay ever directly affected you in any way? I highly doubt it." Axel grabbed my upper arm, lifting me out of the seat and picking up our backpacks. "You know, it's okay to be jealous of us. But just because you are a dick, doesn't mean you're going to get any."

And with that, Axel kissed me. Right in the middle of class. Some people rooted for us, some took pictures, and some wrinkled their nose in disgust. I swear one girl's nose started bleeding. "One more thing: his name's Roxas."

And with that, Axel dragged me out of the class.

"So… why are we at the ice cream parlor?" I asked as Axel ordered ice cream for the both of us.

"I dunno. Just felt like it, really," he shrugged. After telling Seifer off, Axel had taken me to his car and we skipped the rest of the school day. We got our ice cream and took a seat in the farthest booth. "I think you'll like this flavor, Rox."

"What is it?" I asked, looking at the aquamarine-colored frozen treat.

"Sea-salt ice cream. My favorite," he answered, taking a rather large bite and smiling. I took a spoonful of it myself and looked at it questioningly before tasting the ice cream.

My eyes went wide as flavor exploded in my mouth and it felt like I had the worst brain freeze in history.

"Roxas! Ventus! You guys have to try this new ice cream flavor they just got!" he exclaimed.

"But -, what if we don't like it? You would've used your allowance for nothing," Ven pointed out.

"Don't worry, Ven, I promise you'll like it. Have I ever been wrong?"

"There was the one time you told us there would definitely be cookies if we helped you clean your room. But there weren't any cookies," I chipped in, Ven giggling.

"Yeah, but you got cookies at school the next day! So you still got them!"

"Only because our mom packed them in our lunch."

"God, Rox, you're such a stickler for detail!" Ventus and I laughed, poking our friend's shoulder. "Are you gonna eat the ice cream now, or can I just have it all?"

"We're gonna eat it!" Ven and I stated simultaneously. Together, we lifted a spoonful of the funny colored treat to our mouth, making a face at the taste. It was different.

"It's salty…" Ven started.

"But sweet…" I finished.

"Yeah! It's sea-salt ice cream! Isn't it awesome?" our friend smiled. "Roxas! Roxas! Roxas!"

"What?"

"Roxas! Roxas! Roxas!" he kept repeating.

"What? What do you want?" He just kept repeating my name and it was getting very irritating.

"Roxas! Roxas! Roxas!"

"Roxas!"

My eyes refocused and my headache calmed down immensely. Ventus and the other kid were gone and I was back at the ice cream parlor with Axel.

"Roxas, are you okay? You zoned out again and you looked like you were about to cry…"

Shit. Of course I did. I always had day dreams and nightmares about that kid and they always made me sad for some reason. "I'm okay. I'm okay, Axel. Just… thinking of an old friend."

Oh look! An update that DIDN'T take a month or more c:
Happy New Years', guys~ I'm glad I'm starting off the new year with a chapter I actually really like. Hope you guys like it, too~

Thanks to my lovely beta, Elizabeth-Anne19, who has been helping me throughout the whole story since I'm a loser, lol.
Characters (c) Tetsuya Nomura.

Reviews would be lovely~