Yo, peepos! I need to update all my stories during this December, finish up my homework and studies if I force myself, and write more, more and more. So, if you don't review, you don't care. So review, after you read the story of course.

Random question - did anyone get pissed off at their iPods before? Because I did, for two whole days, just screaming at the little thing that cut off all my Kingdom Hearts soundtracks and replaced them with Michael Jackson ones. It's sort of stupid, since they could belt out a sad song (like Roxas' theme...!), and then jump to something as fast as Black or White or I Want You Back. I like Michael Jackson (today, I stared at him in his red vest in the newspapers for quite long, wondering if he was really gone. The video 'Thriller' was rated the best music video by the writers of the newspaper) but I just don't like the iPod re-mixing his songs.

Axel and Demyx scrutinized their blonde friend very closely, looking up, down, left, right, top and bottom (Axel tried checking inside Roxas' pants, but the blonde got so angered he smacked Axel's poor head away) and finally, they stopped and diagnosed him.

...Or not.

"Dude, there' nothin' wrong with Roxy," Demyx complained, slapping Roxas' back hard. He looked back at Zexion, who was staring at Roxas' cupboard in a way that made Roxas believe that Zexion was trying to destroy it with only his hard glare. "right, Zexy?"

"I don't care," his dark voice replied. Demyx frowned, then broke into a random smile, then shrugged nonchalantly, though his eyes gleamed with sadness. Zexion just continued his silent tirade against the cupboard.

Axel just frowned even harder than before. "Roxas, there's no evil in your eyes. You smilein a here-let-me-give-you-some-candy sort of smile, and not your hiya-come-closer-and-I-will-snap-your-neck-and-laugh-at-you sort of smile," and he looked at Roxas and bent down to examine his goofy grin," and your grin is not your usual muahaha-I-am-eeeevil sort of grin, it's an uh-hyuk! sort of grin."

"You mean like Goofy from Disney?" Demyx piqued, his face lit up upon hearing the trademark cry of Goofy.

"Yeah, exactly, it's just, well, goofy. So not cool, man..." Axel trailed off, and he looked away, deep in thought.

"Axel, I'm completely fine...!" Roxas retorted, but Axel stopped him.

"See? See what I mean, Demyx?" Axel bellowed, spinning around to face the mullet-haired teen.

"Uh...he wants you to not worry over him like a mum?" Demyx ventured, a silly grin on his face.

"No. Beeep, wrong, Demyx..." the redhead muttered, and he walked away. After pacing up and down just once, Axel jumped around in an exaggerated fashion, snapping his fingers, "Eureka, baby! I got it! You, my friend..."

Axel walked over to Roxas, who held his breath unknowingly. The redhead slung his arm over the blonde's shoulder. Roxas felt like shrinking, or dissolving into a random hole. Whichever brought him far, faaar away.

"You need a date." Axel finally decided, clapping his hands in mock respect (for himself, most likely) before he elbowed Roxas teasingly. "Peeerfect."

"A-A date?" Roxas asked incredulously. Olette?- oh, wait, holy crap, why did I just think of her name instantly?! "Y-You mean like, with someone?"

"Yessssh, Roxas. D-A-T-E. Got it memorized?" Axel tapped the blonde's forehead hard. "With someone, of course...unless you happen to be an acquaintance of an imaginary friend..."

"S-Someone? U-Uh, who?" Holy shit. He's gonna pair me up with Olette. I just knew it. He's been staring at me for ages this week. Oh goodness...

Axel chortled. He brought Roxas closer, then pulled his ear towards Axel's lips too close for comfort.

"Hmmm."

"A-Axel...?"

"Ahhh."

"A-Axel? H-Hey, you're fre-"

"Your date will be..."

Axel pulled away, and started to laugh in an insane manner. He slammed Roxas' back with his hand repeatedly, becoming hysterical. "With all of us, of course! Who did ya think we'd let you date? Olette?"

Roxas blushed. Gosh, exactly! "N-No, of course not!" He let out a nervous laugh. "Ah, Axel, I almost thought you were gay or something..." Or just really mad at me, so mad that you'd let me date Olette. But phew, glad he didn't notice.

Axel frowned. "Well, I'm not. Commit to memory, Roxas." He scratched his head, then smoothed his red hair. "You need some guy time, Roxas. You've been stuck at home for ages, I bet Mrs Strife influenced you with her womanliness."

Roxas let out a nervous laugh again. At least they don't know that I've been at Olette's place studying Trig...

"Anyway," Axel continued, just as Roxas expected. The redhead turned around, cleared his throat and addressed the otehr three males lounging on Roxas' luxurious bed, "tomorrow we'll be going to The Salty Shack for some ice cream, and then we'll go hang around 'til lunch, and then we'll go to one of your dad's sponsors, Roxas, so that we can grab a free meal and go."

Roxas sighed. "Axel, I told you, we're not going to take advantage of my dad's business partners just for a free meal..."

Demyx leapt up from the bed, "How about some Mcdonalds'? We haven't eaten much fast food since Zexion got fat on fast food and we decided to cut down on fried stuff with him...!"

"Shut up, Demyx," the dark, dark voice hissed.

The three ignored him. "At least Zexion seemed pretty happy for his usual mood today," Roxas remarked, "since it's been half an hour together and he said six words in such a short time frame!"

A growl from behind.

Axel smirked. "Yeah, he's happy, alright..."

Olette put on her cap, and took her rucksack gingerly. "So, how do I look?"

Wakka circled his sister with much effort, looking at her from his wheelchair seat. He stroked his goatee thoughtfully. Tidus was sitting on the floor, with their mother on the couch. All three were examining her outlook.

Finally, her mother spoke, "You look great!"

Tidus lit up at his mother's voice. "Yeah, sis! You just need to smile alot!"

Wakka nodded eagerly. "That you can do!"

Olette grinned, to the delight of her three family members. "Y-You really think so?"

"Of course, sis!" the two brothers yelled, while their mother just nodded merrily, a small smile evident on her face.

"Got your other uniform in the bag?" Wakka asked.

"Your bottle for refilling water?" Tidus reminded her.

"How about some sun lotion; it looks pretty hot t'day!"

"Oh, did you bring your purse just in case your customers give you tips?"

"Some money in that purse?"

"Oh, you need coins, too, if you're planning on taking the train or the bus there!"

The two brothers continued firing reminders repeatedly, one after the other. Olette just smiled and nodded her head. "Yup, yup, yup, and yup! Got 'em all!"

She breathed slowly, forcing a smile. "Okay, mum, go rest up, yeah?" Olette said, and she gave her a thumbs-up, "because I'll be fine. No worries..." Then, the brunette looked at herself in the mirror for the last time.

She was wearing a simple white spaghetti strap tank top, a checkered skirt that was slightly above the knee, a white cap and her chestnut brown hair was up in a neat, tight bun that was sticking out of the hole of the cap behind. Some of her bangs and stray hair fell over, falling to grace her cherubic face. "I'm ready for work."

The shirt, skirt and cap were all labelled The Salty Shack.

"Ngh...not yet, Mum...!" Roxas cried out, as he banged his fist at random places of the table until he finally hit the 'stop' alarm. "Oh, yeah..." He shut his eyes for a moment, before his eyelids flew open, and his sapphire eyes bulged out like the blue jewels sticking out of a mine. "Oh, crap!"

He leapt out of his bed, and was about to run out of the room when he realised he had to wear a shirt in the very least, and brush his teeth. "Stupid habits..."

Finally, when he emerged from his mansion in a simple black polo, a white, loose tie and white jeans, he checked his phone. 13 missed calls from Axel, 43 missed calls from Demyx, a new message from Zexion.

"Daaaaamn!" Roxas wailed angrily, before he bolted out of the gates and straight to the Salty Shack.

"Thank you; see you again, sir!" Olette waved, giving the man a huge grin. The man grinned back, and handed Olette a ten-dollar bill, mouthing keep the change, before he winked and walked away.

"Thanks again!" Olette yelled out, as she slipped the bill into the cashier counter. She picked out 9 dollars out (since the ice cream that the man ordered was worth a dollar) and sprinkled the coins into her personal jar labelled Tips. Olette grinned; she'd be getting that little bonus from the boss without a hitch...

Her eyes noticed a silhoutte approaching, and without turning around she greeted, "Hiya, this is The Salty Shack; how can I help you?"

"Hi, I would like a- Oh, my gosh, heeey, Olette!" a chirpy, happily gay voice greeted.

Olette flinched, and she whipped around, only to be staring straight in the bulging bright eyes of Demyx, who decided to stick his head into the booth right in Olette's face.

"Uh...hey, Demyx...!" Olette greeted back nervously. Then, she took a breath, and spoke more confidently, "so, whaddya want?"

Demyx bit his lip. "Aw, man, I forgot..." He looked around for Axel and Zexion, before he sighed disappointedly and turned back to Olette. "Uh, I think I'll get...three sea-salt ice-creams."

Olette smiled. "Sure thing. Any drinks?"

"Nah, no need," Demyx replied. He looked behind again, darting his head around as though he was looking for something.

Or someone.

Olette shrugged off that incredibly random thought. "Okay, 3 bucks in total."

Demyx suddenly turned around. "O-Oh, okay, sure..." He shoved his hands into his pocket, rummaging his jeans pocket for coins.

The brunette watched the blonde. He had a baby blue shirt that read 'SMILE IF YOU'RE GAY', and he was wearing denim jeans that seemed rather...tight. His sneakers were designed with a blue metallic sitar, and colourful stars.

"My shoes are nice, aren't they?" Demyx mused, smiling at Olette. He wriggled his toes, just for the effect. "Glad you've taken suchan interest in them."

Olette laughed. "Oh, yeah, they're great!" She handed Demyx the three ice-cream sticks, while Demyx in turn handed Olette a 5-dollar bill.

"That's my apology for making Roxas kiss you last time, 'kay?" Demyx winked, and he petted Olette's head. Then, he walked off to join Axel and Zexion. "See you back at school, Olette!"

Olette smiled. Yet another tip.

"A-Ah, I'm finally here!" Roxas exclaimed, as he stumbled into a chair between Axel and Demyx. "Sorry, guys. Overslept."

Axel rolled his eyes. "Oh, now you're back to your old self. Grumpy and all from your lack of sleep."

The younger blonde frowned. "Well, I am kinda grumpy and pissed..."

"So Roxas from last time..." the redhead muttered. "Good times..."

Demyx simply clapped his hands happily, earning a silent stare from Zexion. "Oh, yay! We're all here!" He looked at everyone, and he exclaimed, "Group hug!"

He proceeded to sling his shoulders over Roxas and Zexion, pulled Axel by the front of his shirt, and pulled the three to himself. Axel squirmed out and hissed, "Since when did your hands get so long?"

"I have gone through puberty!" was Demyx's exuberant reply.

Zexion frowned, and went back to toying with his black iPod. Roxas stood up. "Well, I'm gonna get some ice-cream. Maybe my mood will be lifted or something."

He strode to the counter, and without bothering to glance at the cashier he spoke in a harsh, rapid tone," I want some sea-salt ice-cream, on a stick, and some Coke just about right now."

Olette was busy trying to refill the ice in the machine, so she scowled when she heard such a tone. Nevertheless, she controlled the urge to whip around and slap the guy in the face, and said, without turning around to fully address the person, "Sorry, please wait for a moment, I'll get right down to your order immediately after this."

Roxas narrowed his eyes. "After this? Woah, woah, I want it now."

The brunette gripped harder on the bag of ice. "Sorry, I have my hands full now."

"Well, you'd better hurry up, okay?" Roxas barked.

The sudden loud voice startled Olette, and she stumbled away from the machine, almost toppling over the counter. There was a stray puddle of water there and that caused Olette to fall down harshly. The bag of ice slipped out of her hands, into the air. It burst open, causing the sharp pointy ice pieces to fall.

Before Roxas could react and duck to save his head, Olette had leapt up instantly, and smashed all the big ice pieces into miniscule ones with her fisted hand, leaving Roxas totally unharmed. She then used a combination of her fists and elbows to smash the remaining ones, allowing them to fall on the ground, completely harmless.

The patrons of The Salty Shack just applauded in awe, as Olette finally opened her eyes. Roxas dropped his intended payment onto the ground in shock. She smashed all that ice pieces with her eyes closed?!

Olette turned to face the blonde boy, and that was when realisation struck him.

"W-Wh- Olette?" Roxas glanced at her with wide eyes. Olette just attempted to regain her balance. She had been leaning on the counter when she smashed all the ice pieces, and she had to walk.

"Ngh! Y-Yeah, it's me, alright..." Olette spoke, before she fell to the ground, clutching her ankle and shutting her eyes tight, crying out in pain.

"O-Olette? H-Hey, you okay?!" Roxas asked, and he gingerly climbed over the counter, only to clumsily lose his hold. He fell right next to Olette with a loud thud.

Roxas ignored his throbbing butt. He turned to her, and shook her shoulders wildly. "Olette! Y-You okay?!"

Olette huffed, her eyes in a daze. "I-It's just a sprained ankle; nothing more..."

"B-But, it's a sprained ankle! Goodness, Olette, are you nuts? It's not nothing, it's something much more than nothing! Look, we have to get you to a doctor now!"

"N-No," Olette hissed through her clenched teeth, her eyes welling up. Tears started rolling down her cheeks in angry streams. Her hair fell apart in a mess. She let her head droop down, but Roxas lifted up her chin worriedly.

"I-I have to do this job...and I have one more later...!" Olette muttered, as she struggled to get up. Her leg gave way, causing Olette to cry out again. Roxas put out his hand for Olette, but she swatted it away. "I need the money, Roxas. I can't throw it away just because I have a sprained ankle and I have to go to the doctor's for treatment...!"

She dragged her leg determinedly, ignoring the stares from the other patrons. She looked down at Roxas, who was still on his knees, bewildered by Olette's behaviour. "Get up, Roxas. You wanted some ice cream, didn't you? And a coke." She closed her eyes, pushing back all the tears. Images of Wakka, Tidus, her mum flooded through her mind. The girl looked at Roxas, and smiled, "Would that be a small?"

Roxas gaped at her, and then he abruptly crawled up. "Stop taking orders, Olette, and get out of your workplace now!"

Olette gave him a deafening glare, causing the blonde to flinch. "I'm fine. Now, get up, Roxas," she instructed, as she gave a small smile, just to reassure him.

Roxas grimaced. "N-No way. If you're-" he pointed his index finger at Olette, "-going to work here and that other place, then I'm making sure that you don't ever get hurt, and after that, we'll bring you to a clinic and I'll pay for your bills, Olette!"

Axel, who was watching the whole cheesy love drama the whole time in rapt attention, finally stood up. "Wait, Roxas. Did you just say the word 'we'? 'Cause we were supposed to have a jolly good time, not helping anyone. We call it outings, Roxas, not freakin' charitable acts of kindness for a reason, y'know!"

He walked towards the counter, his eyes glaring down at the blonde, still dumbfounded and on the floor. Olette looked at Axel, then back at Roxas. The redhead spoke again, "And we are not going to break our non-schedule just for a schoolmate, got it memorized?"

Olette nodded her head in agreement, her bun now almost falling apart. Her damp hair bounced along with her head movement. "Roxas, just run along. I'll be fine, okay?"

Axel smirked at Olette, obviously pleased with her agreeing with him. "See, Roxas? Nooo worries here!"

This time, Demyx stood up. "Well, Axel, I think we could help her out..." the boy mused, as he scratched his head nervously. "Besides, we do owe her big time for that kiss incident. I think we should totally help her out."

The redhead groaned. "Oh, Dem, not you, too?"

Roxas staggered up. "Okay, we're even. Last vote goes to Zexion..."

On cue, everyone looked at Zexion, who looked up at the four of them. Demyx, with his hands in his pockets, giving Zexion a pout. Axel, his green eyes narrowing, like his eyelids just sharpened his eyes like daggers. Roxas, with his hair messed up, a stern look on his face. Olette, with her cap undone and her tank top slightly wet, giving Zexion a curious look, her head tilted at an angle.

"..."

Omg, what will Zexion choose? Help Olette or go out with his friends? Stay tuned, peeps! And remember what I said! If you don't review, you don't care.

Was it a good cliffy? ;D