Disclaimer: I don't own it, now on to the fun stuff.
A/n: I don't remember much about writing this story, I was having a rough day and well… Anyway, I really liked it, so here's another chapter! Sorry it's so late, though, I've been a lot busier than usual this week. Axel and Reno are so much alike, I think they even have the same voice actors. I just couldn't help but see Reno the whole time I was writing this. I'll have to write something about him next. Axel seems a little bit out of character, sorry about that. And yea, this update is a few hours sooner than I had indicated in my profile, but I'm sure nobody actually noticed that. I'd just proud I hit my designated update time! I always hate it when you don't know when to expect a new chapter, so I wrote down in my profile what I'm working on and when to expect it.
Little bit of a spoiler if you don't know who Namine is.
To the reviewers:
Blast Off, that's pretty much what I thought when I read over it.
Kill-All-Flamers, yea, the characters seem a little weird, I'll see what I can do about it this chapter. Typical pairings are no fun, you can find them anywhere! Sorry it was confusing, it was kind of supposed to be.
DemonSurfer, I have been wondering that since I played the game. Very confusing stuff. If you write an Axel/Kairi fic I'll read it. I don't even know how I thought this one up.
Thanks for reviewing!
One more thing! If you want this story to continue, review and let me know, because I was thinking of just ending it here.
Chapter Two
Kairi was finally happy, this was the best night of her life. It had been years since she's done something spontaneous like this. Axel was so much fun to be around, and he was a great conversationalist. His voice was beautiful and she was perfectly happy just laying there listening to him talk.
"So the idiot goes ahead and opens the crate anyway, even though Xaldin and I both told him not to!" Axel said, looking over at Kairi. She smiled and laughed.
"Why would he do that?" She asked, giving him a questioning look. He shrugged.
"I guess he didn't believe there was really a giant heartless in there."
Kairi laughed again. "Sounds like Sora!" She turned her head to look back up at the stars.
Axel sighed heavily. "Yea, they probably could have been friends had the situation been different. I bet a lot of us could have been…"
They were lying on the beach, side by side. The sand had long since cooled, and the normal sounds of the island had faded, leaving only the waves to keep them company. It seemed like there were a lot of stars in the sky tonight, but maybe Kairi just hadn't bothered to notice before. Axel watched her for several minutes, trying to decide what to say. The moonlight reflected off her perfect skin, accentuating her pale complexion and outlining her face.
"This place is beautiful. I'm really glad you won." He said quietly, still watching her. She looked over at him. "I'm sorry I couldn't help." She looked sad.
"You did help."
He wanted to look away, but he couldn't. He continued staring straight into her eyes. She made him feel so strange. He supposed he wasn't used to being around someone who cared about him. That right there was part of the reason he had gotten so attached to Roxas. She smiled and he thought his heart was about to explode. She sat up and looked out at the ocean. The main island could be seen on the horizon, a dark blotch against the deep blue sky.
"Want to go for a walk?" She asked. He jumped to his feet.
"Sure! Show me around." He offered her his hand and helped her to her feet. She thanked him and gestured down the beach.
They walked along quietly, just happy to be together. She couldn't believe she was here with him. She barely knew him and yet here they were, flirting in the middle of the night. They had walked around through the door to the back of the island. Kairi jumped down onto the sand and Axel entertained himself by jumping across the gaps in the walkway up above. She continued to walk along below him, looking up to watch. He glanced down at her every few moments.
"So are you still a nobody?" She asked loudly. He stopped and thought about it.
"I don't really know what I am now, but I'm not a nobody." He tapped a finger against his chin in contemplation.
"How do you know you're not a nobody? You look the same to me." She felt dumb for asking, it sounded really rude to her.
"I have a heart now! Something must have happened to Kingdom Hearts." He said, wondering out loud. Kairi nodded knowingly, she had been there when it happened, after all.
She stood there watching him for several minutes. He held his arms out as he walked along the platforms, his coat flowing out behind him impressively. He looked down again and noticed her watching him. He felt embarrassed, running a hand through his spiky hair and coughing modestly.
"So, uh, how long have you lived here?" He asked nervously, leaping from the last platform and landing gracefully on the raised ground where it ended. Kairi moved forward and began walking up the wooden steps to meet him, her shoes clanking gently.
"A few years, since I was eight at least. I don't remember all that well." She said. "Where are you from?"
Axel shrugged. "No idea, I don't remember anything from before I was turned into a nobody. I guess I'll never know." It was kind of sad, but he was sure that whatever his past may have held, he would trade it right now just to be here with her. She looked at him sadly and he offered her his hand.
Kairi stopped and stared down at his hand. She felt kind of silly, but it seemed like he was offering her something more. She thought about it for a moment. She didn't really have any idea who he was, that bothered her. But as far as she could tell he was a really great guy. He had never done anything to hurt her, not even when he kidnapped her to try and get Sora to come to him. She looked up into his eyes and he gazed back at her. There was a sense of honesty in his eyes and she really liked that. She took a slight breath and gently took his hand, she might as well give him a chance, something in her just kept screaming that he was right. He grinned when she accepted his offer, and true to her intuition, he pulled her closer. Her heart began to pound when he wound his arms around her.
"You have got to be the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." He said quietly, gazing down into her eyes happily.
"Well you get right to the point." Kairi murmured, the corner of her mouth lifting. His expression turned serious.
"I'm afraid to take my time, I'm sorry if I seem too forward. I'm sure you'd understand better if you had died once, too." his voice was quiet and the way he said it made her heart want to break.
She nodded slightly in understanding, but couldn't hide the blush that spread across her face at what he was implying. His heart fell at the look she gave him, and he felt guilty.
"I'm sorry, I just… I'm sorry." He released his hold on her and stepped back, head lowering.
Kairi watched him for a moment, he looked so sad and hopeful, all at the same time. She couldn't stand it. Rushing forward, she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face against the material of his coat. He hugged her back eagerly. Looking up at him, she noticed the dark contrast between his pale skin and the marks under his eyes. The moonlight illuminated his features and she felt strangely comfortable in his arms, staring up at him.
"Ever since I got back, you were all I could think about. I've never wanted anything so much but to be here with you. I want to know who you are, I want to know everything about you. I need to know what it is about you that I like so much, and why I find it so easy to show you who I am. I feel like I've known you for years now, and I want to know why." She stared up into his eyes boldly and he couldn't help but smile.
Axel took her hand in his and began walking down the beach again, heading back the way they had come. He sighed up at the stars as they walked along together, and Kairi's heart pounded harshly in her ears. She was in love with this man, and she had no idea why. She felt like they had been together like this before, walking along and talking. He was talking again, telling her another story of before when he was in the Organization. She watched his lips move and his voice echoed in her mind distantly. She wanted to kiss those lips, she wanted to rip that cloak off of him and shove him in the sand. She wanted to straddle his hips and feel him rocking beneath her, hearing their voices mingle in the cold night air.
"-scared the crap out him! I thought he was going to kill me and Roxas." He laughed casually, oblivious to the images in her head. She nodded and giggled, hoping that was the reaction that he would be looking for.
It seemed to work, but he stopped and looked at her knowingly.
"You know, I guess in a way we did meet before." he said quietly, gazing deep into her eyes as if he was looking for something. Kairi just looked back at him questioningly.
"I used to have to watch after Namine, back before Roxas betrayed the Organization. I guess you could say we were…Pretty close." He sounded almost embarrassed and she could help but feel the same way. She knew who Namine was, she could feel the other girl in her head, practically swooning over Axel.
"Is that why I feel like we've met before? Because she spent so much time with you?" She asked with interest. He nodded uncomfortably.
"Yea, I guess it would be." His memories of the cute little blonde came flooding back. He saw her standing there in Castle Oblivion, giggling at him after he had fallen down some stairs trying to catch her and take her back to her room. Folding those perfect hands in front of her beautiful smile, leaning back ever so slightly, he couldn't be mad at her. It wasn't possible.
He looked back at Kairi, the same face, darker hair, and somewhat darker eyes, but they were identical none the less. She had those same perfect hands, the same smile, the same movements.
Kairi could tell there were some underlying feeling there, and decided to drop it and move along. She lead him forward through the door again and out onto the front of the island. She supposed in a way it was a good sign that he loved Namine, didn't that mean he had fallen in love with her heart before he had ever really met her? She knew that he felt familiar, Namine must have spent a lot of time with him.
She took him to her favorite spot, Paopu Island. From here the slight glow of the sun edging up on the horizon was visible, dimly lighting the sky behind them. She released his hand and ran forward, leaping up to sit on the bent over paopu tree. Axel sauntered around the side of the tree and leaned casually next to her. They sat there in silence for a long time, watching the stars begin to vanish in the approaching morning light.
"I wish I could live here, this place is great." Axel finally said, glancing at Kairi as she turned to watch him from her perch on the tree.
"Why don't you?" She asked.
He thought about it for a moment. "I don't know, I guess I just don't really feel welcome here after what I did. I don't think Sora would like me here." Kairi scoffed.
"That's ridiculous! Sora has never said a bad word about you. He looked like he wanted to cry when he told us how you died. Besides, I want you to be here, so Sora and Riku should respect that." She replied. His eyes shot up to hers and he grinned.
"You mean you want me to stay and if they complain you'll kick some ass?" he laughed, turning so he leaned on his elbows on the tree trunk. Her cheeks turned pink and she began mumbling something incoherent.
Axel reached up gingerly and grasped her chin in his hand, slowly leading her face down to him. Her eyes slid closed almost hopefully and he placed a soft kiss to her lips. It felt like something in her chest exploded and when he pulled back she nearly tumbled off the tree after him. He smiled softly at her reaction and drew back to watch her.
Kairi sat there awkwardly, completely unsure of what she should do. Her mother would shoot her if she could see her now, out in all hours of the morning with a man that she desperately wanted to drag back to her room and ravage. But she was sure that was just her inexperienced teenaged hormones kicking in. She needed to think this out. A breeze fluttered by her bare arms and she shivered. Axel looked at her with concern and took her hand, pulling her off the tree.
He slipped his heavy coat off to reveal a black tank top underneath, barely hiding his slim muscles. He took a seat in the sand and pulled Kairi down next to him, leaning against the tree trunk. She complied and curled up beside him, resting her head on his chest and draping an arm over his stomach bravely. She could practically hear Namine singing in her head as Axel draped the coat over the two of them and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She felt like singing herself, feeling the warmth from his body radiating into her skin. The soft pounding of the ocean's waves lulled her to sleep in his arms.
xxxxxxx
Riku could not believe what he was seeing.
Axel was leaning against the trunk of their favorite paopu tree, with Kairi sprawled across his lap. They were both sound asleep, and looked like they had been like this for quite a while. He had to admit, he'd never really met Axel before, so he wasn't sure if he should be any more worried than he already was for the auburn haired girl in his lap.
A splash in the water behind him made him turn sharply and he watched blankly as Sora's spiky hair appeared over the edge of the island. He was dripping wet and nearly fell backwards again as he struggled up the slippery ladder. Riku indicated for him to be quiet and the brunette's questioning eyes slowly fell on the two curled up at the base of the tree. Riku knew exactly what was coming as the boy's face lit up and his eyes widened in amazement. He tried desperately to jump on the boy and quiet him before-
"AXEL!" He shrieked, leaping forward away from Riku and jumping on the now startled red head.
Axel looked up in shock as Kairi threw herself off of him in embarrassment and Sora leapt on him happily. He squeezed the man's shoulders tightly and showered him with ocean water in his excitement.
"I thought you were dead, it's so great to see you again!" He cried happily, finally releasing him so he could breathe and stepping back to look at Kairi. She blushed darkly.
"Hey Kai, I didn't know you were dating this guy." Riku said plainly, giving her a teasing smile as her face got even darker.
"I-" She stuttered, she didn't know what to say. She looked from Riku to Sora and then to Axel, who stood and brushed the sand from his pants before giving her a questioning look. He almost looked sad, like she was rejecting him. Kairi couldn't bear the thought of offending him, they had just gotten to know each other!
"I.. yeah." She said meekly. Axel smiled and looked at the two boy almost smugly. Sora's eyes got even bigger and his gaze shifted between them.
"Oh, that's great!" His voice cracked a little but he forced a smile for them anyway. Kairi's heart panged and she immediately felt bad for him.
"You moving in here then?" Riku asked, trying to be oblivious to the fact that she may have just broken Sora's heart. Axel scratched his head, glancing around the island.
"Um, yea, I guess so. I don't really have anywhere else to go." he said awkwardly. Sora's eyes brightened at that and Riku smirked.
"Cool, that means you're one of us now." Riku said casually. "We should get you some new clothes, though, you still look like you're part of the Organization." he laughed. Axel looked down at himself and wrinkled his nose.
"New start new look I guess. It's too hot here for black anyway." He smiled happily at Kairi and she couldn't help but smile back. He stepped forward and took her hand as the two boys walked away down the wooden bridge. He picked up his Organization coat and shook the sand out of it before following them with Kairi at his side.
End of Chapter Two If you want the story to go further review and let me know, otherwise it's going to be a while before I touch this story again. Thank you for reading!
