Trust No One
AN: I suck. Hate me.
This update is so late, I'm so sorry. I changed what would happen halfway through this chapter, because I can.
Btw, I know, this chapter fucking sucks. I apologize.
I do have a lot of plans for this story though, so hopefully you all enjoy the plot twists I will eventually add as much as I do! :D Here's Chapter 4~
Chapter 4: I Hate People
The new boy in the office stared at the twins, eyes darting between both of them. He never directly looked them in the eye, but he did seem interested. He questioned why both of the younger boys were wearing beanie's with cat ears, but didn't voice his curiosity.
"Ah, Axel. You're back again?" One of the receptionists behind the counter called, standing up and walking over to the redhead.
"Well, what ever would you do if you didn't see my beautiful face everyday, Miss Kino?" He offered a smile, but she merely shrugged it off.
"Let me guess," She put a finger to her chin in thought. "Missed another homework assignment? Or perhaps a project due?"
"It would have to be the first one," He said, "Cid sent me down here because of it. Alas, I have a perfect reason to not have done my homework though!" The girl raised her eyebrow to signal he can continue. "I went to a friends house, due to a family issue, and forgot my science book in my attempt to escape quickly. Therefore, there's no one to blame but my parents," Axel looked quite smug with his partial truth.
The women looked at him. "And how am I supposed to believe that you had a choice to get your science book but decided not to since school isn't your option?"
Axel gripped his chest, just about ready to release some sort of fake hurt, but was distracted by the tall blond talking to the two new boys. "Roxas, Sora, I have to leave you two here while you take your entry tests, okay?" The brunette nodded, showing that he understood. But, Axel noted, the blond didn't say anything. He just... Stared. "I'll be back as soon as you call me when your tests are done," With another nod from the brunette, the dad, Axel assumed, walked away.
"Sora, come with me," Aerith said, waving her hand to show that she wanted one of them to follow. As, now known, Sora followed Aerith to a room where he was set up, the other boy, Roxas, made eye contact with Axel. When the ocean blue eyes met the acid green ones, a moment of thinking made Axel slightly recognize the smaller boy.
When Aerith called Roxas to follow into the same room, he complied and left. "Hey, what's the last name of those two boys there?" Axel dropped his hands from his chest, not bothering to turn his head to Yuffie who was waiting for a retort.
"Oh, them? They're two new students. I think their last name was... Strife? Yeah, Strife," She answered, also looking towards the room they had disappeared in. "They look alike, don't they?" Yuffie sighed, knowing exactly why Axel would be so silent with the blond haired boy.
"What do I need to do?" Axel changed he subject, much less enthusiastic than he was only a few minutes ago.
Yuffie was silent for a few seconds. "I'll let this one slide. Go back to class," She was sympathetic to the redhead, having known him for all his years at TTH, him being a senior now, and she knew the pain that shot through Axel.
It didn't matter that she was a faculty member, she was the youngest out of all of them, having taken an internship when she was 19, and had known Axel since he was 14; her now 23 and him 18. Axel was a trouble maker in high school since the start, being sent down practically everyday for another missing assignment. Yet, somehow, he managed to pass each of his classes with straight A's.
Axel gave a timid nod, leaving before his emotions caught up with him. As the man traveled down the hallway, he pondered as to why he was here. Him, of all people. How could this have happened? Was this destined so Axel could go through the same pain?
Axel cursed the name that traveled through his thoughts, making a scowl appear on his face as he entered his science class again. "You're back?" Cid asked, his accent cutting through Axel's thoughts.
"Yeah," Instead of some long reason as to why he came back, he quietly sat beside one of his closer friends. The pink haired man gave Axel a quizzical look.
"Now why would you be so quiet?" Marluxia asked quietly with his automatic demanding tone in place.
Axel looked at him through the corner of his eye, wondering if he should bother telling Marluxia his personal problems in the middle of class. "I'll tell you later," And strange enough, Axel went to work; paying attention and even answering a few questions. It was obvious something was deeply troubling him.
Roxas glared at the piece of paper in front of him, not knowing how to simplify a radical. Nor how or what graphing points were, or how to solve for x when the question says 3x - 7y = 38. What the fuck did that even mean?
"Um, Aerith?" Roxas gave up, turning to the girl dressed in mainly a bright pink that Roxas did not appreciate of.
"Yes, Roxas?" She responded sweetly, taking a few steps away from her desk to get closer to the blond.
Roxas nervously swallowed, not liking the closeness and hating talking to other people. "May I use the restroom?" It was a simple excuse to get away, look up how to do these things on his phone. With a small nod from Aerith he stood up. Following the directions Aerith had given him, he made his way quickly to the bathroom.
He locked himself in a stall before pulling out his phone. Roxas noticed that it had been a little more than an hour and a half since Cloud had left, which would explain why two bells had rung and students milled in and out of the office before leaving quickly.
Before Roxas started looking up how to graph points and how to decipher a word problem, he looked around the stall he was in. Most of it was clean, except for that strange smell that came along with any public bathroom, and words were pencil written in along the walls of the stall. Curiosity getting to him, Roxas leaned forward to see what some of them said.
One at the top placed cleverly to make a face said "I see you," but that was the only good one. The rest... Roxas pulled his face away, forgetting the words that were sprawled across the walls and beginning to look up his cheats.
He had finished in no more than three minutes, his mind soaking up the information like a sponge. He hastily left, not wanting his twin to worry or get scared being alone. Just as Roxas was about to open the bathroom door, someone else did for him.
It was another dirty blond haired boy, who was wearing camo shorts with a black shirt and a tan half vest. Without even apologizing, the boy tilted his head and said, "You're new, aren't you?" With no response, he continued, "I'm Hayner, what's your name?"
Roxas gave a slightly scared, slightly confused look before pushing Hayner out of his way and practically running back to the office. He didn't speak the rest of his test, and he didn't speak when Cloud came to pick them up. Even Sora was silent, feeling his brothers sudden fright.
Their uncle didn't bother trying to get anything out of them, at least not until they were in the car. "Mr. Strife?" Aerith called, holding out a few papers. "It's policy that all new students have their parent or guardian fill these papers out to ensure they're in a safe environment. Have them return these next Monday, when they start school," She gave him a soft smile. Cloud took the papers before leading the boys to his car, getting in silently.
Roxas stared out the window most of the time while they drove back, occasionally looking at his twin to make sure he was okay, and locked fingers with Sora.
With the seemingly longer drive back, they each had their own time to think. Roxas was wondering why the redhead in the office was giving him such a strange look; he could feel his eyes on him the entire time. Was there something the redhead wanted? Perhaps, he thought he was someone else? And what is with the kid at the bathrooms? Hayner, Roxas recalled, why had that kid also been interested in Roxas?
Roxas let out a small sigh, dreading the four days until Monday. If the two people he saw today acted the same as Monday, he wasn't sure he could stand it. What with all the undoubtedly stronger, taller males there. That leaves Sora as well; Roxas had seen his brother opening up more but he had those nights when all he did was cry. He was still so fragile, taking everything and anything as an offense.
Roxas, on the other hand, was a different story. He never showed how upset he was to Sora; he didn't want his younger brother to worry. He was the strong one anyway.
"We'll go school shopping on Sunday, alright?" Cloud announced, breaking the thoughts of the two boys. Sora nodded, his eyes on the back of Cloud's head for a second before turning towards Roxas.
Having mastered mouthing sentences since any noise back at their home would result in a beating, Sora mouthed, "Are you okay?" Roxas shrugged in response.
"The boy in the office... He kept staring at me, that's all," Roxas responded with the same technique. "Did you see him?"
Sora nodded. "He was giving you that look of... Remembrance. Maybe you remind him of someone,"
"But who?" Sora shrugged this time, ending the conversation. With their small talk done, they could sit in a peaceful silence while Cloud drove back to the house.
Both the boys noted on how Cloud sighed a lot more just sitting in the drivers seat and that he seemed to be more flustered than usual. But, they did not say anything. They knew not to snoop in other peoples business.
3:07... Why am I awake still? Roxas sighed, tossing and turning for the umpteenth time that night. He glanced at Sora, who remained sleeping, and turned his attention back to the white ceiling once he was sure his brother was okay.
The poor boy had woken up due to a noise he heard out in the hallway, more than likely, it was just his uncle meandering about the house. Why he wouldn't go back to sleep, he didn't know.
Every noise made Roxas jump. Whether it be his brother switching his positions in his sleep, or his uncle meandering around the house and checking on the boys to make sure they were alright. The blond had no idea how Sora managed to stay calm, and happy even, all the time. There was no way Roxas could ever act like that. It just wasn't in his nature anymore.
His nature consisted of being afraid of everything. The darkness and Sora were his comfort, the light meant new customers, big boots brought about old and still fresh memories, and Cloud's voice made him think of his father. Outside meant nothing but new objects to find, what with only being allowed outside when they were young.
We won't go back there, so why can't I forget it? He sat up, running a tired hand through his hair. Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he stood, knowing he won't get much more sleep this night. As long as Sora doesn't have one of his usual night terrors, Roxas would be free to explore the large house.
Roxas left the room silently, keeping an eye on Sora the whole time to make sure he stayed asleep. Once he was free of the dark room and into the dimly lit hallway, he took a look around the hall. He never stared long enough to get a good look at everything, so now was the perfect time when no one would bother him.
It was definitely a plain house. White walls covered every room, along with rosewood for the flooring that spread throughout the house and in every room except for the bathroom and the kitchen. There were no pictures in the hallway like most fancy houses have, but instead there were simple lights that could be changed from dim to bright with a dial.
Taking a left, he followed the night chilled wood down to Cloud's room, his feet not making a sound. He pressed his ear up against the door, hearing Cloud snoring softly in his sleep. The blond pulled away and turned back around, heading down the other end of the hallway. He walked straight through the kitchen, which held pristine counter tops, and headed for the dining room. The blond sat at the table, simply playing with the beige cloth that covered the middle of the table.
He propped his arm up, resting his head in his head while his elbow supported him on the table. His gaze ventured from the tabletop to the window that lay at the opposite end he was sitting. Blue eyes shone in the moonlight that barely flitted in through the window, casting a small shadow onto the blond haired boy who refused to tear his gaze from the outside.
What's it like… Being normal? There were some things the blond knew and other things he didn't; but that question was always there. It was like repeating question that kept coming to him every few seconds, wondering what it'd be like to actually grow up with a normal household, in a school that he'd complain about every day but still attend it knowing that he could do great things one day, and with normal friends that he could hang out with every day and even if they moved, he could still keep in contact.
Why'd this have to happen? Why did Chase change…? Folding his arms on the table, Roxas rested his chin a top the appendages, staring at the ticking clock on the wall above the kitchen door. Quarter to four. I should get to sleep. He sighed at his own thoughts. He knew that he wouldn't be able to sleep. Too much on his mind.
School started tomorrow, anyway.
AN: Late, late, late, kill me. Hey, I was busy… with life.
I remembered all my plans and decided, lets go write! So here's the fourth chapter (finally)! I think I'll update sooner rather than later… I think.
Thanks to all who waited and reviewed last chapter! (those reviews make me happy~)