Saving Axel

Chapter 6: Art Show

Roxas's POV

I stayed after school for art club because we had to have a meeting to discuss how we were going to set up the Art Show, as well as where it was going to be held, when it was going to be, and who was going to waste their life setting everything up. The members were gathered and talking with Mr. Luxord by the time I showed up. I got the glare, but was ignored after that point. I was late to this meeting because I was caught up in a conversation with the sobbing Sora. Something about Kairi yelling at him about not going to the mall with her yesterday because he went to Riku's baseball practice. Sometimes that girl needs to be told the world doesn't revolve around her.

"Roxas?"

I looked over to Rikku, the blond girl who always wears skimpy, but colorful, clothing who was smiling at me. Today, her choice outfit was a sleeveless, thin midriff green shirt, shorts and tall black high heeled boots. Her long blond hair was pulled back and she had a smile plastered to her face. She was the only other person besides Naminé who willingly talked to me.

"Yeah?" I asked nicely. She looked to the other members who tried to hide their anger for me since I zoned out.

"Naminé suggested you help with the set up while some of us finish up our drawings." I looked around the room to the other in here. I knew Rikku was just kindly saying I was doing all the setup because all I do is take pictures; I know how to read in between the lines.

"I'll do it all. Just give me your art by the 12th," I sighed, and they all thanked me. Selfish bastards… not even Nami offered to help me! Guess she was busy… or was turning into everyone else. I knew joining this thing was a waste of time. I let them talk more about food and drinks while Mr. Luxord looked through his computer for a place to rent out. I was just planning when I would go shopping and when I would set up, because I still have other things to do.

Who am I kidding? I have nothing better to do… this place will be the coolest fucking art show yet!

After the meeting, Mr. Luxord gave me the address and told me to just type in a code, and I was in. I was walking out of the school with Naminé while she went on about which drawings to use, but I was absently listening until we reached her house.

"Are you okay?" she asked, and I turned to her. "To choose your pictures for the show, I mean," she amended, and I nodded. I'd just plug my camera into the TV and let Sora choose. I watched her close the door behind her, and I fixed my bag over my shoulder and continued to walk to my house. I was wondering if Sora would be up to even look at my photos. He seemed really upset about the Kairi incident earlier, and I just hope he's better now. If not, some people will be receiving a punch to the face, and I'm not normally one to be violent. I dug my key out of my pocket and put it into the door and opened it slowly. The house was quiet, but both cars were here, meaning they were home. I walked into the dining room and stared blankly at the person sitting at the table.

Long silver hair and cold light green eyes. He was dressed in black from head to toe and wore a smirk on his face. I cracked into a smile and ran to this man.

"Sephiroth!" I called. He rose and let me attack him with a hug. I was so glad to see him; it had been too long since I last saw him. He wrapped one arm around my back and I held on close to him. "I missed you!"

"It has been too long, Roxas," he said in that beyond calm voice of his. He was my uncle on my dad's side and he was the only person I really loved. He was around often when I was a kid because my parents were still in school when I was born. I would stay with him during the day, and when my parents kept me, he would visit almost regularly. It was the best, but ever since my parents left, I haven't seen him once. I heard a door open and I turned slightly and saw Sora walk in slowly and tentatively. That's the thing about Sephiroth that makes him sort of lonely. He is a pretty intimidating guy, and most people were scared of him. I pulled away completely when Yuffie and Leon walked in.

"We thought it would be a nice surprise, Roxas." Yuffie smiled to me, and I was beaming. "Are you okay with him staying here for a little while Roxas?" she continued, and I nodded quickly.

"I don't want to intrude on your home, Yuffie; I could very easily get a hotel room," he offered. That was my uncle. Looks like he's gonna kill you, but is really a big softy. I sat at the table beside him and Sora sat beside me.

"Where have you been, Uncle Seph?" I asked, and he looked to me and placed a bag on the table with a small smirk.

"Where have I been," he repeated while he opened the bag and removed a few wrapped items and gave them around to the appropriate people. "Well, Leon; do you mind opening the present?" he asked. Leon ripped the paper off to reveal a little bear wearing a turban and holding a lamp.

"You were in Agrabah?" Sora asked, astonished, and I stared shocked as he nodded.

"For two months," he answered. He looked to Yuffie. "Yuffie?" Sephiroth continued. She held it closer to her and raised her left hand to rip off the paper. I noticed her hand was shaking slightly which wasn't like her at all. I was about to question it when she squealed happily.

"You went to Atlantica City?" she asked excitedly as she held the small mermaid figurine. Yuffie had always thought mermaids were cool, so I guess Sephiroth picked it up for her.

"One year," he sighed. "It was a bad year. Let's just say I hate fish now," he finished, and we all laughed happily. "Go ahead, Sora," he urged quietly. Sora picked up the box. He used the knife from cutting his bagel and opened it quickly. He pulled out a small, stuffed lion with tan fur and a large red mane. I smiled, and he hugged it close.

"Pride Rock. That's outside Lionsville, correct?" Leon asked quietly, and Sephiroth nodded. He nodded in my direction, and I opened the small package for me. I pulled out a picture and stared at it long and hard. It was a picture of my house; the one I lived in when I lived in Hollow Bastion; the house we would always come back to after a trip around the world. I had completely forgotten Sephiroth bought it off my parents since it was almost eight years ago that he did.

"It doesn't seem to have changed at all." I smiled slightly, and he placed an arm around my shoulders.

"I couldn't decide what to buy you from any of the places I've been. The only thing I thought you would appreciate was this." He smirked, and Sora excused himself to go call Riku and talk about his stuffed animal. Yuffie went up to shower, and Sephiroth talked with Leon in the living room. I walked up to my room, shut the door behind me, and then fell onto my bed. I closed my eyes and sighed as I clutched the picture to my chest. This picture may not be much compared to the other gifts, but to me, it was enough.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

I walked through town as I slowly made my way to the grocery store. Sephiroth is staying for two weeks, and he has been here for about three days. Things I guess have been pretty normal; Axel randomly talks to me when he waits to see the nurse, and my friends are the same, I guess. Sora has patched things up with Kairi and seems to be happy, and I was as bored and lonely as ever.

I walked into the store and grabbed a cart and looked at the list in my hand. First stop was cookies; all kinds of cookies. Damn, I'm going to be poor by the time I get out of here! I was so distracted by my calculations in my head, I ran into someone else.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" I called as I ran around to help the person I ran into, only to pull my hand back. "Axel," I stated evenly, if not a little agitated.

"Oh, so if I was someone else you would care?" he mocked a hurt voice and stood up. "You should pay attention when you are driving a cart, Rox," he explained, but I went back to my cart and pushed it away. He followed me.

"Why are you following me?" I sighed as I compared different boxes of cookies. He stood to my side and threw a box into my cart. "Hey!" I called.

"Hey, if your entertaining the masses, you want sugary filled products so you aren't left with twelve boxes of cookies you don't like conquering your refrigerator," Axel explained. I stared at the box of cheap, iced sugar cookies.

"Good point," I said lamely as I stared at the list again. He peeked over my shoulder. "Wanna help me out?" I mumbled, and he stared with a smirk on his face.

"What? I didn't quite catch that," he said sarcastically with a hint of smugness.

"I asked if you want to help me shop!" I practically yelled, and he laughed happily; that nice, full laugh that only he is capable of. "You seem to know what people like, and I don't," I continued in a calmer voice. He nodded.

"I'd love to. What's next there, partner?" he asked as he took hold of the cart and leaned over slightly.

"Drinks," I answered as he started forward to the drink aisle, and I followed quickly. Since he was taller, he had a longer stride with those long legs of his. He stopped in front of the pop and stared for a few minutes. I grabbed a bottle of orange pop and root beer, and when I turned to grab some bottles of water, he stepped forward and grabbed a small bottle of grape pop and placed it in the cart. He sent me a smirk and helped me lift the case of water. It was heavy, so he pulled up his sleeves slightly. I noticed some greenish, purple marks on his wrists, but he moved before I could examine them further.

"Anything else?" he asked as he fixed his sleeves before turning to me fully. I looked to the list quickly.

"Plates and napkins," I said quietly. He nodded and pushed on through the aisle and left me to follow him to the appropriate aisle. There was still a question burning in my head and I just wanted to blurt it out and see his answer. "Why do you talk to me?" I asked quickly and quietly. He turned to me and looked at me for a while.

"What?" he asked, and I looked into his eyes before he pulled away to grab some plates.

"I know you heard me. People in this town only talk to me because Sora is my cousin; Riku is Sora's friend so of course he would be nice to me and the same goes for Kairi. I know for a fact Sora hates you a lot so… why?" I rambled until the end.

"You're not like other people," he said. He placed the paper plates into the cart and turned to grab some napkins which he placed in the cart as well. "There's more to you than meets the eye," he finished quietly, so quietly I barely heard him. He turned to me quickly with a smirk.

"That's all I need," I said. He nodded and we approached the check out. He walked right on past me.

"I'll be outside!" he promised as he walked out the door. I nodded, and when it was my turn, I smiled. The cashier smiled at me. His blue eyes always sparkled, and his brown hair was always combed to perfection. He was always so nice to me.

"Afternoon, Zack," I greeted cheerfully, and he nodded.

"Hey there, Roxas." He scanned a few items. "Planning a party?" he asked when he swiped a few boxes of cookies.

"Sorta. The club wants me to set up the entire thing. It seriously blows," I sighed angrily, and he nodded.

"That does blow. I heard rumor you have family visiting; is that true?" he asked curiously. I nodded. "I should stop by soon then. Introduce myself, you know?" he explained as he accepted my money. I nodded.

"I don't think my uncle would be totally okay if I was friends with a 25 year old, though,"I sighed, and he laughed. I placed the bags into the cart.

"Here!" He tossed me a small chocolate bar. "On the house; I'll introduce myself anyway! I can run pretty fast!" I laughed with him and walked out of the store, and I saw Axel talking on a phone with his back to me. He was yelling at someone, but he soon hung up. Then he punched the wall a few times.

"Axel!" I called and ran over and grabbed his bloody hand and he looked at me, shocked. "Stop it, you idiot!" I shouted, and he continued to stare with wide eyes. "Come on." I pulled him toward cart. I grabbed my messenger bag and pulled out a couple tissues and some tape. I pulled his right hand to me and dabbed the bleeding skin. I wrapped it up with some tissues and taped them there.

"I'm fine." He pulled his hand away. "I'll see you~" I pulled his left arm roughly so he couldn't leave.

"You'll be fine when I say you are!" I commanded, and his narrowed eyes widened again to the size of the plates I bought. "You're coming with me," I stated and made him follow me as I dragged him by his left arm. I don't know why he was so shocked because I cared; he could get sick if he ignored it, so I was going to care for him. I mentioned once before that I can be pretty demanding and scary if I need to be.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"I'm home!" I called into the quiet house. I put my bags on the floor and turned to Axel who was standing right outside my door. "You can come in, Axel," I sighed, and he nodded and walked in. "Sit at the table and take off the bloody tissues. Stay put." I ran up the stairs and opened the bathroom door and went to the closet. I pulled out the cleaning alcohol, gauze, and the medical tape. I turned on my heel and ran down the stairs, but paused when I heard voices. One was Axel and the other was Sephiroth. Shit, I forgot he was here. I listened in because eavesdropping was cool, right?

"You're here because?" Sephiroth asked. I could only imagine the glare Axel was receiving.

"Roxas dragged me here. I did something stupid and he was being a good friend and helping out," Axel stated evenly. It's a good thing Axel was normally strong and fierce.

"You're friends with Roxas?"

"I'd like to think so," Axel said. He thought we were friends; what did I think we were? I walked into the room and the eyes turned to me.

"He's okay, Uncle Seph," I stated as I sat beside Axel. He nodded and walked out of the room, and it was quiet.

"Protective uncle," Axel said, and I laughed lightly.

"He used to work in the army as a spy, so he is trained to be a dick to outsiders. Give him some time; he just was honoring a promise." I smiled as I examined the broken skin. "How many times did you punch that wall, Axel?" I asked, and he smiled.

"I lost track at seven." He laughed, and I put some of the alcohol on a paper towel and dabbed it on his broken skin. He flinched and hissed in pain.

"What have we learned, Axel?" I asked sarcastically, and he laughed.

"To not punch walls," he sighed. I wanted to ask why he punched it to begin with, but I resisted. If it was a personal thing, I wasn't about to intrude. I finished wrapping his knuckles up and placed the tape there to keep it in place. I got up and went to the freezer and placed some ice cubes in a zip lock bag, feeling his eyes on me the entire time. I brought the bag back and put it on the wrapped knuckles.

"You're gonna want to change that tomorrow before school. It's gonna be sore and I would try my best not to get that wet," I finished, and he nodded. He stood up and took the bag with him. "Call me if you need anything." I placed a napkin with my number on it in his pocket. He nodded again and walked out of the kitchen and to the door. I heard it shut behind him, so I walked up the stairs to the guest room and saw Sephiroth sitting on his bed.

"Will your friend be okay?" he asked, and I nodded. "I'll go and make dinner since Yuffie and Leon will be late tonight. Call Sora and make sure he'll be home in an hour." He walked past me, and I went to my room to wait. I laid flat on my bed and removed my glasses and closed my eyes, and then my phone vibrated. I told Sora not to respond, just to be aware. I put my glasses on and stared at the unknown number. I opened the text.

It's Axel. Thx a bunch!

I smiled and texted him back. I guess we were friends now.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Axel had been absent all week. It was rather upsetting because I wanted to check on his wrappings, and I was debating on asking Demyx, Marluxia, Larxene, or Zexion where Axel lived. I hoped he was okay and his cuts didn't get infected, because if they had, I'd blame myself. I walked up to Zexion in the library since we had a substitute and it was a study hall.

"Hey," I said quietly, and he looked up from his thick book and let a small smile grace his lips.

"Hello, Roxas," he said. I sat beside him and placed my bag on the table.

"I was wondering if you know where Axel lives?" He looked down and I got nervous. "I mean, you are friends - I thought you'd - it just seemed like maybe you would~" I was stuttering trying to word it correctly.

"He hasn't contacted any of us at all, so we are as clueless as you, Roxas," he said quietly. I saw Demyx run into the library, get yelled at to which he nodded quickly, and then speed-walked to the table we were at.

"Zex~ Oh. Hey, Roxas." He smiled sheepishly when he saw me, but turned his attention back to the expectant Zexion. "I still haven't got a hold of Axel, but he did send me a message saying he was fine." He smiled broadly like he just announced the answer to world hunger.

"There, Roxas. Axel is just fine," he said trying to convince me, but his tone of voice suggested he didn't even believe that line. I nodded and let Demyx talk to Zexion who was trying to read and laughed to myself. Demyx tried pretty hard to get Zexion's attention, and he just wouldn't have it. It was sad, but funny. You wouldn't even know if Zexion even knows how much Demyx likes him. Axel hadn't texted me since the first night he got my number, and we had texted back and forth for five hours that night. His last message to me was one I couldn't get out of my head, no matter how hard I tried.

Night, Rox. Sweet dreams for a sweet kid.

Love ya! See ya this weekend!

He basically told me he wouldn't be at school; why didn't I pick up on that? Why would he tell me, but not his other friends? Why would he not tell anyone if he knew he wasn't going to be here?

Maybe he went on a trip.

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Ouch! Shit!" I shook my hand in pain. I hated that damn table because when you tried to set them up, it would pinch your skin. I kicked the leg and the table collapsed on itself because it was the portable ones where you have to set up the legs. I had been at this warehouse since 7 a.m., and it was noon now. I had set up the tables and different stations for the different people in the group. I was pretty tired since I spent all last night figuring out how things were going to be set up, so I just collapsed on the floor for a few minutes to relax. I removed my glasses and shut my eyes to rest for five minutes.

Then when I opened my eyes again, someone was holding a bottle of grape pop over my face. I sat up quickly and smacked heads with the person.

"Shit, sorry." I grabbed my glasses and let my vision focus on Axel. He had a scar on his face that wasn't there last time I saw him. I placed a hand on the scar, and he looked away and back again.

"I ran into some tree branches," he sighed, and I laughed.

"So, you just break into places during lunch time?" I asked, and he cocked his head to the side.

"How long were you on the floor, Roxas?" he asked confusedly, and I looked equally confused. I was about to say a few minutes when I looked at my watch where it read 7 p.m.

"Fuck!" I cursed and jumped up. I freaked out since I still had so much to do in an hour. I was so screwed.

"Calm down, Roxas. You'll be fine~"

"What do you mean calm down?" I fired at him in a loud, panic filled voice. "I was charged with taking care of this, and I could only start set up today! I didn't get sleep last night and fell asleep here! Mr. Luxord already hates me enough; why not give him another reason to hate me?" I laughed in hysteria. To all outsiders, I may have looked like I was having a mental break down. "I'm so fu~"

Axel pinned my wrists to my sides and pushed me to the nearest wall and placed his head in the crook of my neck. I froze, but then visibly relaxed. He whispered into my ear lustfully.

"Breath, Roxy. I'm here, and I will help you. Calm down or I'll make you calm down." I closed my eyes. Half of me wanted to scream 'rape'; he was eighteen already, and I was sixteen. Though, the other half wanted to see how he would make me calm down. Oh, does that sound dirty~ Wait, what? He pulled away and got out his iPod. He walked over to his bag and pulled out a portable speaker and plugged it into the wall. His iPod began to play the song Getting Away with Murder by Papa Roach.

"Where do you need me most?" he asked happily, and I, still leaning on the wall, smiled slightly. I pointed to the bags of different art projects, and he went over to the bags while I set up stands and such. Maybe I would finish in time.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

We finished just in time. I quickly went to the bathroom to freshen up and change clothes while Axel set up the cookie plates. I walked back into the room dressed in black slacks and a white button up shirt. I stood near my empty station and began to remove my framed pictures and place them in the small area in the back. I knew Axel would probably leave soon, so I better say thanks now and see him off. I walked around the bend to find Axel admiring some of Naminé's drawings. Since she was my best friend, her display was in the front where everyone could see it.

"Nice, aren't they?" I asked, and he nodded silently. "She really is a gifted artist." I sighed. I had known Naminé ever since a week after I moved here. She had talked to me when Kairi introduced us at her house and things sorta kicked off from there, friendship-wise. Somewhere along the way, she fell in love with me, and I hate to say I don't return the feelings.

"We're friends… right?" he asked slowly, and I looked over to him slowly. His face was completely serious; a look that often never graces his features. Were we friends? I'm pretty sure before I may have said we were, but I guess the fact that he pins me to walls, feels me up, or randomly kisses me makes it a bit confusing. What were we? Where did we stand? Friends? Friends with benefits? Oh, it was so confusing; he was so confusing.

"That's what I thought," he sighed, and I turned sharply. I didn't even say anything~ Oh, I get it. "I'll see you later, Roxas," he said, depressed, as he left the warehouse. Even when people started to arrive, when I was showered with compliments about the beautiful set up, I still felt empty. Was that because Axel had left so dejected, or the fact I caused his dejected attitude. When all was said and done, I was still there cleaning up. I had seen a bunch of people I knew, all of Axel's friends included. I had my iPod plugged in to my ears and was listening to music pretty loudly. I turned around and was about to start removing my pictures to throw in my bag, but I stopped and stared, dumbfounded.

There was a large note written on the display board I had set up. The note had been written in red sharpie, and the note was a simple one that didn't need a from to tell you who it was.

You're the best damn artist here, and you better not deny it!

Got it memorized?

So Axel had snuck in under the radar; that sneaky son of a bitch. At least someone likes my art. Or likes…

Me.