When Axel woke up the next morning, what had happened the day before finally clicked into place. Burying his face in his pillow, he groaned. "I'm such an idiot…"

It took him a minute, but he finally got up, heading into the living room.

"How you felling?" Cloud asked when he saw him.

"Better. But I'm now faced with a problem." Axle said.

Larxene, who had been sitting in the room as well, looking over. "What's up, Scarlet? You look like shit."

"Oh, thanks." Axel rolled his eyes.

"So what're you gonna do?" Cloud asked.

"I don't know. I need to apologize." Axel answered.

"That's probably a good idea." Cloud agreed.

"Okay, wait. What happened?" Larxene asked.

Axel frowned. "Pissed Roxas off."

"So apologize. Roxas will forgive you." Larxene shrugged.

"His friend Hayner's involved with Seifer." Axel added.

Larxene blinked, leaning forward. "What? Shit. That sucks."

"I wasn't coherent enough to explain why this is a bad thing and instead just pissed Roxas off." Axel said. "It's gonna take a hell of a huge apology to make up for that."

Cloud groaned. "So basically you just told him he can't hang out with Seifer? Yeah, I can't see him taking that well."

"Yeah." Axel said. "But Seifer's bad news. We told you the story, right Cloud?"

Cloud nodded. "So what're you going to do?" He repeated.

"I need an apology that will make him forgive me and get him to listen." After a pause, "And I think I have an idea. But I need both of you to help."

XXXX

Roxas walked out of class and headed to the parking lot to find Sora.

A horn beeped as he walked in and Larxene's head stuck out of the window, "Hey! Roxas! Over here!"

Roxas walked over. "Hey, Larx, what're you doing here?"

"I asked Sora if I could come pick you up. I wanted to talk to you." Larxene answered.

Roxas sighed and nodded. "About Axel? How's he doing?"

"I'll tell you. Get in the car." Larxene said.

Roxas nodded. "All right, but I really don't feel like seeing him right now. Okay?" He walked around the car and climbed in the front seat.

"That's fine. We're not going to the house." Larxene promised, starting the car.

"Good. So… how is he? And how's Dem and Zex? They work everything out?" Roxas asked.

"Yeah, they're fine now." Larxene answered. "And Axel…" She trailed off.

Roxas sighed. "Yeah… I thought so. Hey, where are we going?"

Larxene glanced into the rearview mirror and Cloud sprang forward, quickly blindfolding Roxas.

"What the hell?" Roxas yelled, trying to take it off.

Cloud stopped him. "Just trust us, Rox."

Larxene sped up, pulling onto the highway. "Just relax. We'll be there soon."

XXXX

"My brother's where?" Sora asked, raising an eyebrow at Axel.

"At Zexion's summer house." Axel repeated. "For three days with my roommates."

"Who kidnapped him." Sora added.

"Yes."

Sora sighed. "Right. I should be more worried."

"Larx and Cloud will take care of him. I need to come and go from his bedroom for those three days. I'm attempting an apology."

"By kidnapping him." Sora said.

"Well. Yes. I guess." Axel said.

Sora groaned. "Give me the address of where he is so Riku and I can drive by and make sure he's okay? We won't steal him back."

Axel rattled off the address and Sora wrote it down.

"Alright, well. Try not to destroy Roxas's room." Sora said.

"I won't." Axel promised. "Thanks, Sora." He dashed up the stairs. Sora rolled his eyes, leaving to call Riku.

XXXX

Riku studied the massive house they were currently parked in front of. It was three stories and had a wrap-around porch, and was quite a ways from any neighbors, nestled out in the country. "This is it?"

"This is the address Axel gave me." Sora nodded, "So, I hope so. I don't know him well enough to know if he'd just send us somewhere random." He grabbed his phone and stepped out of the car, shutting his door behind him.

Riku climbed out too. "I don't think he would. Maybe. Did he tell you why Roxas was taken out here?"

"He just said he was attempting to apologize." Sora said, "And needed access to his bedroom." he added as an afterthought, walking around the car to take Riku's hand. "Either way, I'll feel better lying to my mother when she asks where Roxas is if I know he's safe."

Riku nodded and squeezed Sora's hand. "We'll find him. And if you don't want him staying here, he won't. Okay? Looks like someone's here, at least, since there's another car here. Let's try knocking first."

"Sounds good to me." Sora nodded, the two of them heading for the door.

Riku knocked and the silence was broken by the sounds of pounding feet.

"Please be someone sane!" Roxas shouted as he threw open the door, Cloud on his heels.

"Goddammit, Roxas, you can't just leave - you'll get lost out here!" Cloud yelled.

"Sora! Thank god!" Roxas said, hugging his brother.

Sora laughed, "You seem to be in one piece. That's good." he commented.

"Okay, what's going on?" Larxene asked, walking into the front area where the door was. "Oh. Hi."

"Sora! They kidnapped me! You're going to take me home, right?" Roxas asked, looking hopefully at his brother.

Cloud sighed. "Roxas, it wasn't kidnapping. You willingly got in the car. We're just on a little... vacation."

Riku raised an eyebrow. "And why exactly is Roxas on "vacation"?"

"Roxas is on vacation because he's on vacation." Larxene answered, "And he's not going anywhere."

Sora sighed, "Well, can we at least come in?" he asked, "Since we're kind of just standing in the doorway here?"

Cloud nodded. "That's fine." He waited for the couple to drag a reluctant Roxas back inside before closing the door. "Kitchen's this way." He led them to the kitchen, taking a seat at the large table.

"Maybe if we run we can make it." Roxas whispered.

"No, you won't." Cloud said.

"Rox, let's wait to form the escape plans until after we hear them out, okay?" Riku laughed, sitting down and pulling Sora with him.

Sora chuckled, "Right. So, explanations would be nice."

Larxene rolled her eyes, "We were told to bring him out here so he could have a mini vacation. Relax a little."

"After everything going on at our house lately, we figured everyone could use a break. Dem has to keep going to school and Zex isn't ready to let him out of his sight yet, but Larx and I could take the time to come up and Axel insisted we take Roxas since he's been so helpful." Cloud explained. "I'm hoping you know at least a little what's been going on?" He asked.

Sora nodded, "Yeah, the basics." he nodded. "That makes sense."

Cloud nodded.

"When did Axel decide this? Before or after he became a sleep-deprived ass?" Roxas asked.

Larxene raised an eyebrow, "Before. We'd been planning on coming up as soon as everything was over for awhile, and Axel suggested we bring you."

Roxas sighed. "He did? Even though he's the one stressed out and over-tired?"

Cloud nodded again. "He was worried about you."

Roxas put his face in his hands. "And I picked a fight with him..."

"Don't beat yourself up, Rox. Sounds like you both could use a break anyway." Riku said, shifting Sora more comfortably on his lap.

"Worry about it when you get back. For now, looks like you get to relax." Sora said, shifting and glancing back at Riku to see if his new position was a little better.

Riku smiled at the brunette in his lap and tightened his hold on him.

"Okay. But I don't get why I can't know where we are." Roxas said.

"We didn't know if you would realize you need this break as much as we do so by making it so you don't really know where you are, you're forced to stay and at least try to relax." Cloud explained, glancing at Larxene.

Larxene just nodded, "Exactly."

Roxas sighed. "How long?"

"Three days." Larxene answered, "We promise we'll bring you home safe and sound." she rolled her eyes.

"And you're okay with this?" Roxas asked his brother.

Sora nodded, "Yep. You need the vacation, Rox." he shrugged.

"What about Mom?" The smaller blonde at the table asked.

"I'll handle Mom, but I don't think she'll mind." Sora rolled his eyes.

Roxas nodded. "Okay. Then I guess... I'm staying here for a few days. Please tell me you know where the nearest grocery store is." He said to Cloud and Larxene.

Cloud chuckled. "Yeah. But what are you saying, our cooking is bad? You haven't even had it yet!"

Roxas rolled his eyes. "I need baking supplies."

Sora laughed, "Well, doesn't look like he'll be trying to escape anymore." he commented.

"Good." Larxene said, "It's hardly relaxing to chase after him."

Cloud gave her a look. "You weren't even the one chasing him!"

Larxene stuck her tongue out at him and smirked, "That's not the point."

Riku laughed. "So, whose house is this, anyway?"

"Zexion's." Cloud answered. "Well, technically his parent's house. It's one of their summer homes."

"I didn't know he was rich." Riku responded.

Roxas shrugged. "He doesn't really act it."

Sora raised an eyebrow, "Why did you guys choose a summer home to go to in the beginning of winter?" he asked.

"It's closer than the one winter house not currently occupied by Zex's parents." Cloud explained.

"Ah." Sora nodded.

"Did you want to stay for a bit, Sora, or leave now that you know Rox is safe?" Riku asked, rubbing his boyfriend's back.

"Doesn't matter." Sora answered, "We can get out of your hair and let you three relax if you want." Sora answered, leaning into Riku just slightly.

Roxas smirked. "Are you sure it isn't us who needs to leave you two alone?"

Sora raised an eyebrow, "You sure you've been paying any attention?" he asked, amused, "It's not like we haven't been sitting like this the whole time."

"I've just never seen you so... cuddley. I mean, it's only Riku, but I just never thought you'd actually realize anything and now that you two are together, it's a little creepy. In an 'I'm-happy-for-you-but-I've-known-you-too-long-and-the-cuteness-burns-my-eyes' kind of way." Roxas said.

Sora smirked, leaning into Riku again and giving him a kiss, just to spite his brother (though he will admit that he never passed up an opportunity to kiss Riku.)

Riku felt bad for Roxas for half a second before pulling Sora closer and kissing him back, not letting him break the kiss for several minutes.

"I don't - and you just - I can't - Sora?" Roxas sputtered as Cloud laughed at the sight of the look of shock on the other blonde's face.

Larxene burst into laughter as well, smirking wickedly.

Finally, Riku pulled back, staring into Sora's eyes and smiling at the look he got back. He kissed him again, just because he could, before forcing himself to stop.

Sora turned back to Roxas once they were done to see the damage that his impromptu makeout session with Riku had sparked.

Roxas kept glancing between the two before settling his gaze on his brother, face burning red in embarrassment for him. "Sora? What the hell? Since when are you the one kissing guys?"

"I'm not kissing guys, I'm kissing a guy. Riku." Sora shrugged, "Kairi had a less amusing reaction than you."

"Kairi didn't just watch her sexually confused brother make out with his best friend turned boyfriend!" Roxas protested. "Damn. Don't do that again. Do you get creeped out when I kiss a guy in front of you? 'Cause now that I'm on the other side, I'm sorry."

Sora laughed, but didn't answer, neither to promise not to kiss Riku again in front of him or say whether or not Roxas's kissing habits creeped him out. Instead, he glanced at Riku, "Alright, well, we'll let you guys get to your vacationing."

"Fine. Leave. You don't get any cake." Roxas grumbled.

Cloud laughed. "More for me, then!"

Riku smiled at Sora and nodded.

Sora chuckled again, "I'll just get cake from you later." he said, smirking and standing up so Riku could get up.

Riku stood quickly and took Sora's hand. "Have a good vacation, Rox. If you guys need anything out here, we could always take another ride out."

Cloud nodded. "Thanks, but I think we'll be good. It's only three days."

Roxas stuck his tongue out at his brother. "Wait, I just thought of something - I kinda need more clothes and stuff if I'm staying here."

"Actually already taken care of." Larxene spoke, "Axel gave me an approximate estimate of your size, so I bought you some stuff." she shrugged.

"Stuff. As in, clothes. Full outfits. Boxers." Roxas stated.

Cloud smirked. "I grabbed those, don't worry."

Roxas looked relieved. "Good."

Larxene laughed.

Amused, Sora spoke up again, "I'll pay you guys back for the clothes later." he said.

Larxene shook her head, "Don't worry about it. We told you before, Zexion's family is loaded."

"You used your roommate's money to buy Roxas clothes?" Sora asked.

"Yep." Larxene nodded.

"Zexion knew what we were doing and he has willingly given us each access to his funds just in case. We aren't stealing from him or using him for his money - he trusts us because we're his family just like he's ours." Cloud said.

Roxas nodded. "Yeah, Axel's told me some stories about you guys. Don't worry, Sora, Zexion really doesn't mind this type of thing."

Sora nodded, "Alright..."

"Let's go." Riku said, tugging on Sora's hand.

Roxas smiled. "See you... Sunday? Sunday."

"Have fun." Sora waved, squeezing Riku's hand and heading for the door with him.

"I promise he'll be returned in one piece. Although, I can't guarantee any left over desserts." Cloud grinned, following after them to make sure the door was shut once they left.

"Eh, I live with Roxas, so I'll manage." Sora smiled, "Thanks, Cloud."

Cloud nodded. More seriously, he said, "You're welcome. He'll be fine here and it'll give him time to just breathe. We've been running on fumes for a few days now and I'm sure being around our stress hasn't helped decrease any of his."

Sora nodded, "Yeah, that's understandable. Thanks."

Cloud smiled. "Thank Axel - it was his idea. Have a safe drive back."

"We will, thanks." Riku said, leading Sora out of the house. Cloud closed the door behind them as they climbed back into the car. Riku reached for Sora's hand again before he could start it, though. "You okay with this?"

Sora nodded, "Yeah. I know they were mostly lying to Roxas-Axel told me this had something to do with an apology-but either way, Roxas really does need the break."

"All right. It seems like Cloud and Larxene will watch out for him, though. They must be really close to Axel, to agree to essentially babysit his boyfriend for a weekend." Riku commented.

"From what I've heard, that entire house is family." Sora said, starting up the car, "Like... do absolutely anything for each other family."

"Really? That's... odd. I mean, it's great but at the same time, it kinda makes you wonder where their real families are, you know? Still, I like Axel - he's a good guy." Riku said as Sora headed out onto the road, taking his hand again.

Sora nodded, squeezing Riku's hand as he started to drive, "Yeah, definitely. Looked distraught when he came to tell me where Roxas was. I hope this apology thing works out for him, too, since I know Roxas likes him."

Riku grinned. "That's good because Axel's completely head-over-heels for your brother. I have a feeling he'll be around for a long time."

Sora laughed, "Probably."

"We should do something together, the four of us. See a game on campus, maybe, since you and Rox still go there and I'm pretty sure Axel graduated from there, too." Riku said.

"Sure." Sora nodded, "Sounds good to me. Maybe we should lighten up on the PDA so we don't kill my brother, though. As amusing as that was, I don't really want him dead."

"Whatever you want, Sora." Riku smiled.

As they stopped at a light, Sora turned to smile back.

XXXX

"C'mon, let's go!" Cloud yelled, heading for the car.

"Finally!" Roxas muttered, climbing in. "Great mini vacation and all, if you ignore the kidnapping."

"It's not kidnapped if you cooperate." Cloud mentioned.

"And after all the struggling, you kind of cooperated." Larxene reminded him.

Roxas just sighed.

XXXX

"Sora! I'm home!" Roxas called as he walked into his house.

"Living room!" Sora called back.

Roxas walked in and sat down. "Hey. Hi, Riku."

Riku smiled. "Hey, Roxas. Have fun?"

Roxas rolled his eyes. "I guess. Even on vacation I end up doing all the cooking."

"That's just because you didn't want to eat anyone else's cooking." Sora rolled his eyes.

Roxas grumbled. "I'm exhausted. I'll be in my room." He stood up.

Riku glanced at Sora but just shrugged. "Okay."

"Get some rest." Sora suggested.

Roxas nodded, heading up to his room. He opened the door and frowned, as the lights were on. He turned to the switch and jumped. "Holy crap!" He exclaimed.

"Uh, hi." Axle hesitated. He was standing by the light switch, having been waiting for him.

"What are you doing here?" Roxas asked, looking around his room. Something was different… Glancing up, he gasped. His boring white ceiling was now covered in a gorgeous painting of clouds in the sky. Roxas turned to his boyfriend. "Axel…?"

Axel smiled. "I wanted to apologize." He said.

"It's beautiful. Thank you." Roxas said, stepping towards him.

Axel reached over and flipped the lights before Roxas could get any closer, plunging the room into darkness.

Roxas's jaw dropped. Hidden in the clouds were glow-in-the-dark stars. Slowly, Roxas spun in a circle, eyes glues to the ceiling.

"You remembered what I'd said about wanting to lie in bed and look at the stars? Axel…" Roxas trailed off, finally lowering his gaze to the redhead.

"I was planning on saving this idea for Christmas, but… I wanted to apologize to you. So, Cloud and Larx took you away for a few days while I did this." Axel turned the lights back on. "It's just glow-in-the-dark paint, but I hope it looks okay." He smiled. "I'm sorry, Rox. I wasn't coherent enough to explain myself."

"Axel…" Roxas stepped over to him, hugging him. "It's really beautiful. Thank you. This is the best Christmas present eve. And I'm sorry, too. With everything going on with Dem and Zex, I knew you weren't sleeping. I shouldn't have gotten so mad."

Axel shook his head. "No I was being an ass. But if you'll give me chance, I did have a reason for being an ass, and I would like to explain it."

Roxas nodded. "Okay."

"A long time ago, like… freshman year of high school, Seifer and I were friends. This is back when Larx and I were dating, to give you an idea of how long ago it was. I had another friend, Philip, and Seifer decided he was interested in him. Philip was very straight and so, I didn't even think anything of it, figuring Seifer would give up. But, he didn't. And he… well, he liked to use the word 'converted' Philip. They started sating and everything seemed fine, but two weeks later, Seifer dropped him and set his sights on someone else, despite the fact that Philip had literally changed sexualities for him."

"He just broke up with him like that?" Roxas asked, frowning.

"Yes. Dropped him without a second thought." Axel said. "I went to talk to him – figure out what happened… and Seifer didn't even realize what he'd done. He got some… sick amusement out of converting Philip, and once he'd done that, he had no more use for him. Philip didn't know what to do. It was freshman year, he didn't know anything about this shit. It turned into a huge blowout between me and Seifer, and Philip never really recovered."

"…And you think he's doing the same thing to Hayner. Dammit, I was practically pushing Hay at him, too…" Roxas said.

"The pieces fit, right. Hayner's straight, or at least he thinks he is, and yet Seifer's still flirting." Axel said. "I know he has not stopped his games – the police arrested a woman outside his apartment that wanted to kill him. Recognized her – she was a formerly lesbian worker at the Magic Moogle. That was… maybe two months ago."

"Shit. I'm going to have to talk to Seif. If I tell Hayner now, it'll just confirm his paranoia. Thanks, Ax. I'm sorry I wasn't listening before." Rox frowned.

"I wasn't making any sense before." Axel said. "I was literally just babbling. I'm the one who's sorry."

Roxas shook his head. "You don't have to apologize. God, Ax, you really went all out – this is amazing. I'll take care of Hayner. Thank you for the stars – it's the best Christmas present I've ever gotten." Roxas smiled, hugging his boyfriend.

Axel hugged him back. "Thank you, but this wasn't your Christmas present." He said. "It's just an apology."

Roxas pulled back. "No way. You don't have to do more, not after this! Axle, this is huge – it's way more than an 'I'm sorry'."

Axel shrugged. "Well, that's what it was." He smiled.

Roxas just shook his head and smiled. He stood on his tip toes and kissed Axel. "Thank you. I…" He blushed lightly but smiled. "I love you."

Axel faltered slightly. "I love you, too, Roxas." He said, surprised to hear him say it so soon into the relationship even if Axel returned his feelings.

Roxas's grin widened even as his blush deepened. "Really?"

"Of course." Axel answered. "Do you really think I'd make my roommates commit a felony so I could paint your room if I didn't?" He raised an eyebrow.

Roxas laughed. "It's not a felony if I cooperated." He said, quoting Cloud from earlier. He kissed Axel again. "I love you. Thank you."

"I love you too. You're welcome." Axel answered.

"Yes, yes, love all around, now can we see what we went through the last three days for?" A female voice asked from outside the door.

Axel opened the door to see Larxene, Cloud, Riku, and Sora all waiting there.

Roxas blushed and grabbed onto Axel. "Uh…"

"The ceiling, huh? Not bad." Cloud said.

Riku winked at Roxas. "I'm happy for you, Rox." He squeezed Sora's hand.

"Wait for it." Axel said, slipping the lights, revealing the stars.

"You hit that one on the head." Sora commented. "Very nice." He leaned into Riku.

Roxas grinned. "It's perfect."

Cloud nodded, smiling at Axel. "Good work."

"Yeah, good job, Scarlet." Larxene grinned.

"Thanks." Axel turned the lights back on.

XXXX

Xigbar glanced up from the TV at the sound of a knock at the door. Standing, he crossed and pulled it open. "Roxas? What are you doing here? How did you even know where I live? Is Kairi okay?"

Roxas nodded. "She's fine, she gave me the address and I need to talk to Seifer. He home?"

Xigbar groaned. "He didn't back off of Hayner, did he."

Roxas scowled. "No. Now where is he?"

Xigbar opened the door and pointed at Seifer's bedroom. "In there. If you kill him, try to make it soundless or the neighbor's will complain. I'll be in my room, which is over there." He pointed again, closing the door behind the blonde.

"Thanks." Roxas strode over to Seifer's bedroom door and threw it open, not bothering to knock.

Seifer raised an eyebrow as he looked over, "Uh, hi." he said, crossing his arms, "What are you doing here?"

Roxas closed the door behind him, leaning against it. "Funny story, I had a chat with my boyfriend today and found out some interesting things about you."

Seifer turned his desk chair around, "And?"

"And my boyfriend is Axel." Roxas stated. "Remember him? And he told me all about the games you love to play. What the hell, Seifer? I thought you were a good guy - I've been practically shoving Hayner at you. Well, not anymore. Pick someone else because I am not letting you hurt him."

Seifer grumbled, "This again? Seriously?" he asked.

Roxas scowled at him. "Yes, seriously." He snapped. "Hayner's confused as it is - he doesn't need his first relationship with a guy to turn out as horribly as all your other 'partners'."

Seifer sighed, "Look, Roxas, I've already been 'warned' by Xigbar about what he's going to do to me if this blows up or I do anything 'stupid.'" His tone implied that Seifer really didn't understand the problem, and he was only saying these things to placate Roxas. "I'm being more careful this time."

"Why would Xigbar care? Kairi must've said something..." Roxas frowned. "And I'm not sure being 'careful' is enough. Hayner needs a solid relationship, not a stint as your boy toy."

Staring Roxas in the eyes, Seifer spoke, "I'm not going to break Hayner." he said, slowly, trying to be as clear as possible.

"Do you..." Roxas hesitated before continuing, "Is it just the thrill of convincing him he's gay or do you like him at all?"

"I'm not talking about this." Seifer said, "Hayner's not gonna get hurt. Happy?"

Roxas sighed and slumped against the door. "Not really. Pretend no one warned you about hurting him, pretend you didn't know me and he hadn't stalked you because he's an idiot, do you think he's gay?"

Seifer shrugged, "I don't know. I think he might be. I know he's confused and I'm not helping." he shrugged again, seeming slightly pleased about the 'not helping' part.

"That much, at least, I know. He has a crush on you. Which is why I was so worried about this, but... before anyone told me anything about you, I thought you were a good guy. You stood up for me when you didn't have to, didn't know me. The past can predict the future, but sometimes... the past is just the past. So, you won't hear anything more from me about this. Unless, of course, Hayner gets hurt and comes crying to me." Roxas said with a tentative smile.

Seifer sighed, before offering Roxas a smile, "Right. Thanks."

Roxas grinned. "Sorry for bursting into your room."

Seifer shook his head, "Don't worry about it. Xigbar told me flat out that he'd let you in." he shrugged.

Roxas opened the door to leave, but paused and glance over his shoulder. "Oh, and Seifer? The jacket was a nice touch. See you around." He left, heading for the door to the apartment.

Seifer just shook his head, turning back to his desk.

XXXX

Jasmine here. I know, this is supposed to be Cami's A/N, but we are in the process of writing a very... sensitive scene even as I write this and the character Cami's currently writing has taken over her brain so she can't think coherently enough for anything else.

So you're stuck with me. :P

This chapter is just adorable. I feel like I have to point out the ninja-ness of Cloud and reassure you that no, Cloud isn't a ninja. :D

Also, I want Axel to be my boyfriend! :D He's so freaking cute and I want my ceiling to be painted like that!

Also also, Seifer. Ahhh, Seifer. :D

Anyways... Hope you liked it! Please review! :D