Fame and Fortune
Chapter Six: My Friend
Roxas had dragged Axel to a nearby mall, the blond sporting a beanie to cover his hair and a pair of sunglasses as his elaborate disguise. They were currently at the food court, with Roxas chowing down on a greasy burger while Axel drank his soda, reclined in his chair. During their trip here, the blond had explained that he wanted to have Axel help him pick out clothing that would make them look good for an upcoming photo shoot. The redhead had asked about the rest of Twilight, but Roxas had only said that they'd come another day, and the sheer idea of it didn't really go well with the older man.
When they finished with their food, they began their quest for outfits. Axel had been staring at the blond for some time, trying to figure out his body type, so that when they entered the first store, he'd have an idea of what clothes to get him. "Do you need my beanie off or on when I try this stuff on?"
Axel shrugged, not really paying attention to him but instead on the jeans laid out in front of him.
"Would your view change if I had it on?"
"Drastically." In response to his answer, a beanie hit Axel in the side of his face, landing in his upturned hand easily. He picked out a few pairs of jeans, all skinnies, and a couple shirts, handing them to Roxas, who had already snuck his way into a fitting room. He fixed the hat so it stayed comfortably on top of his spikes. He stood next to the door, arms crossed and back straight. People passed him by, eyeing him, but didn't say anything. Roxas slipped out, tapping Axel's shoulder, twirling when the older male turned around. "How do I look?"
Axel reached forward and removed the blond's sunglasses, revealing his big blue eyes. He looked down at the simple black tee-shirt that had a sunset printed on it's bottom hem, and the skinny black and white jeans. The redhead placed a hand at his chin, looking at the blond carefully. "Converse on your feet, and maybe some kind of plaid flannel."
"I like the pants," Roxas commented, patting his thighs. "I am so buying, like, three pairs."
Green eyes narrowed. "How about we focus on the rest of your outfit? You can't possibly wear the same three pairs of pants for the rest of your life."
"Want to see me try?"
"Not particularly," Axel replied, lightly tapping Roxas' forehead with the blond's sunglasses. "It'd be best to get pants that bring out a punk side of you. Skinnies, mostly."
Roxas looked up at the redhead, lightly running his fingers against his earlobe. "Should I get my ears pierced?"
"If you—what?" the older male sputtered, looking down at his colleague. "Do you want to get them pierced?"
"Wouldn't it help with the look?"
Axel thought about it for a moment, imagining the younger boy with earrings. He shrugged. "I mean, it won't do you any good for when you're up on stage, but I guess during photo shoots it'll drastically up your image."
Roxas nodded, letting go of his lobe. He smiled up at the redhead, white teeth sparkling. "So...more than three pairs of these pants?"
"How about we go to the jeans and go find other pairs?"
In the end, Roxas found himself buying three other pairs of pants, a couple of flannel shirts, and about five pairs of converse, claiming that he had enough money to buy more, but chose to only buy what Axel told him to. They then took a walk down to the food court, Roxas back in his clever disguise, where Roxas ordered a salad and Axel got himself two burgers. As they sat at a nearby table eating, Axel decided to start conversation. "I would have pegged you as someone who ate burgers instead of salads."
The blond looked up, a piece of lettuce hanging from his lips. "It's not that I hate burgers," he began, finishing his piece of food and wiping his mouth on the back of his hand, "I just can't eat them."
"Why?"
"If I eat too much fatty foods, I gain too much weight. If I gain too much weight, I don't look as good. If I don't look as good, my manager's gonna have my ass about it." He shrugged, eyeing the sandwich in Axel's hands. "It's the life I chose to live."
Axel took a french fry and shoved it at the blond's face. "Well have a little freedom in this life, my friend, you're gonna need it."
Slowly, Roxas took the fry, munching on the end of it. "So I'm your friend now?"
The redhead shrugged. He wasn't really happy about how things had turned out lately, but he did realize that he couldn't run away from the obvious friendship the two of them shared. His gaze drifted back to the food in his styrofoam box, a warm flush spreading on his cheeks. He hated being put on the spot like this. When Roxas' warm hand lightly pressed against his, he looked back at blue eyes, realizing the blond had taken his shades off. "I appreciate this, Ax. You're not very easy to make friends with."
Axel let out a short laugh, reaching up to scratch at his tattoos. A habit he had made when he was nervous. "I guess not. Makes sense since I haven't had many friends in my life."
"That's going to change. Can I have another fry?"
"Knock yourself out."
Roxas reached over and snatched another one, stuffing it into his mouth. "It's been so long since I've had junk food. Let me tell you, salads get boring fast."
"I can only assume," Axel commented, smiling brightly. "But the same old burger kinda gets boring too."
Roxas laughed, getting another french fry, and neither male bothered to let their hands stray from their position on the table, one on top of the other.
HAPPEH NEW YEAR—oh shit! *ducks from the oncoming things thrown*
Yes, it's been a month. I'm sorry. I've battled with severe depression (which gets taken care of by my wife, so don't worry) and family during the holidays, so I haven't found the motivation or time to type. But updates should return back to normal.
So Axel finally sorta admits that Roxas is his friend, how sweet. Also, a hint at Roxas possibly getting his ears pierced? We'll see. ;)
-Eternal White Rose