Chapter 2: You're Here With Me
"Could you please hand me the beaker filled with nitrate?"
Vexen slowly removed the test tube he currently had clutched in small tongs from the Bunsen burner. The bubbling blue liquid was beginning to turn an iridescent purple.
"Perfect." he said to himself before realizing he had still not received the nitrate he asked for. "Zexion?"
The boy seemed to be spaced out, staring at nothing in particular which was uncommon for him.
"Zexion!" Vexen yelled, finally gaining the boy's attention. "What is going on? You aren't still moping over that girl are you?" the scientist asked, grabbing the beaker for himself and measuring out the chemical.
Zexion glared, not quite liking the venom Vexen put in the words he used.
"Tryxel. Her name is Tryxel."
Vexen waved him off while placing the test tube back over the heat.
"Not the point. Life, or lack thereof, goes on. It's been 17, nearly 18 years. She's gone." he said coolly.
Zexion jumped up from the table he was sitting at causing several beakers and notes to fall over. With no regard for the fallen items or the elder's stricken expression, he walked out of the lab.
Out in the corridor, he took several deep breaths. He refused to cry anymore. Nobodies don't cry.
"She is not just gone." he mumbled to himself and sunk into the shadows.
Axel wandered outside of Zexion's door tapping lightly.
"Hey Zex? You in here?" he asked quietly. The door opened slowly revealing Zexion still laying casually on his bed.
"That still creeps me out dude." Axel chucked. He joined Zexion and they sat in complete silence for awhile.
"I'm sure we have searched every world by now." Axel sighed, stretching himself out on the bed, Zexion remained silent as he laid beside the redhead.
"Well…. maybe…."
"No! Don't you dare even think that way!" Axel shouted, sitting up to stare angrily at the boy next to him. "I refuse to believe that they aren't somewhere waiting for us to find them. You shouldn't think that either!"
His tone was filled with venom and his breath was coming in short huffs. Zexion sat up and glanced at Axel before looking away toward the ground.
"I'm sorry. It's just been so long. And-" He stopped talking then and lay back again. Axel simply watched his movements in silence.
"Can I be alone please, VIII?" Zexion asked in nearly a whisper.
"Oh, um, okay." Axel said, standing up. He didn't really want to be alone himself at the moment. Being alone allowed him to think to much, and he hated it. Somehow, watching Zexion just breathe was a temporary distraction.
"Sorry that I… blew up on you. Just, frustrated I guess." he apologized. Zexion just nodded after a few seconds passed.
Axel turned and sighed. Great, the boy is already depressed and sensitive. He probably just made him feel even worse which, in turn, made Axel feel worse.
He took a portal to his own room. He pretty much only went there, Zexion's room, and the kitchen when no one else was there. The rest of the Organization just tried to convince him to move on, except for Roxas. He mainly kept quiet about the whole situation.
Whenever he could, the redhead would venture to the Computer Room to research where Rexial and Tryxel could possibly be. Zexion sometimes would join him, They had grown closer since the girls disappeared. They were the only ones who truly understood.
At the moment, he just sat on his bed and curled up. Everything seemed so cold which was obviously foreign to Axel.
Suddenly, he became warm again, he glanced up to see a familiar face. Soft, green eyes staring back into his. Just the ghost of a smile gracing her features.
"Rex?" he whispered, hardly able to believe his own eyes. "Is that really you?"
She nodded and smiled wider. But something was off.
Axel sat up and walked over to her. She immediately put her hands out for him to hold. She felt real.
"Rex. I've been looking everywhere for you." he breathed out in disbelief, wrapping his arms around her. Hesitantly, she returned his embrace.
He just couldn't believe she was really there.