Status: Writing a new chapter!
It's Easier to Run
The Killing Lights.
Roxas whimpered in his sleep, drawing closer to the body that had wrapped their arms around him. He buried his head in the person's shoulder, messing his hair up even further in the process.
Axel sighed and watched the boy he was holding slumber fitfully; he'd taken to sleeping in the upstairs apartment after it was insisted upon that he do so, and considering Axel only had one bed, the pyro was willing to let Roxas sleep in it. The stubborn blonde, however, wouldn't kick the owner of the apartment from his comfortable sleeping space. Of course neither would budge in their argument, leading to the current sleeping arrangements. Thankfully the bed was large enough for the both of them to fit comfortably.
Axel wanted to give Roxas his own room to stay in whenever his parents were going at it, but regretfully his mother only supplied him with enough monthly income to pay the rent, utilities, and buy groceries. After numerous instances of Axel getting caught in the crossfire of her and her husband's fights, she had decided him living elsewhere was better in the long run. Therefore he didn't have a cell phone or car, much less an extra bed for the other boy to sleep in.
Roxas whined again, his nightmare continuing. This was the third time this week he was having nightmares, and it was worrying the redhead. Not to mention Roxas was still getting injuries, the severity of which were increasing daily. Axel wanted to transfer as soon as possible, but the school board's office downtown wasn't able to do so for at least another week.
Axel attempted to smooth Roxas's unruly hair down, whispering softly into his ear. The boy finally settled down, relaxing his death grip on Axel's shirt and mumbling incoherently to himself. Giving a sigh of relief, Axel released the blonde and rolled slightly away from him. He silently resolved to find out what was bothering Roxas so much.
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"I'll pick you up at 3:30, got it memorized?"
"I'm not five, Axel, I can take a bus home by myself."
Axel was walking Roxas to Twilight High School, despite the younger teen's protests. Roxas had no way of knowing what he was doing at night that was causing the redhead to be concerned about his daily activities, and found the short leash he was being kept on irritating.
"Just let me." Axel pleaded, his eyes begging. If he was doing this, it would isolate the time of the incidents to during or after school, and from there on he'd have to wait the time until he transferred before he could take care of anything.
Roxas looked at Axel, eyes confused. "…okay." He relented after a few minutes, searching the taller boy's eyes for the reason he was being so adamant. The bell rang, signaling five minutes until classes began. "But tell me why later."
"Maybe." Axel relented slightly, his mood lightening. His fingertips caught Roxas's momentarily, a new way he'd discovered of telling him goodbye. "I'll see you after school."
The blonde gave him a crooked smile. "Yeah. See you, Axel." The blonde readjusted his messenger bag as he walked up to the school, flipping out his phone and quickly texting to Naminé as he entered the door.
"I'm going to have to get a cell phone…" Axel muttered to himself as he set off toward Hollow Bastion, glad he'd obtained late arrival for himself at the beginning of the year.
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A voice squawked over the loudspeaker, announcing the unfortunate students that were being called to the office. Roxas tuned the obnoxious messages out, opting to doodle in his spare notebook instead.
"Roxas!" A voice called from the front of the room just as said boy was finishing the shading of a chain link.
The blonde looked up at the teacher, alarmed. "Yes, Mr. Leonhart?"
The man frowned at the inattentive student, the scar on his face making the look twice as scary. "You've been ordered to the office immediately. Take your things in case you don't return."
Roxas shrugged, shoving the notebook back into his now empty bag and picking it up from the floor. "Yes sir." He replied, fighting the urge to throw a mock salute and leaving the classroom swiftly. He reached the office in a personal record of three minutes, which was saying something as the school was quite large.
"You've been commissioned to work on a special project." The secretary told him as she handed him a manila envelope and hall pass over the counter. "You're to go to the theatre immediately."
Roxas nodded, exiting the brightly lit office and walking toward the auditorium, which he knew was in the middle of planning for a production by the theater department. He examined the sealed envelope quizzically before sliding his index finger under the flap and ripping it open, foregoing the metal prongs altogether.
Much to his surprise, it had information on a special art project that was addressed to Naminé. He pushed the door to the theater open. "What is this doing here, Nami doesn't even go to Twilight anymore…"
The door slammed shut and a hand was pressed over his mouth, effectively gagging him. "You're gonna tell me about this boyfriend of yours, got it?" Seifer commanded Roxas, who dropped the envelope without a second thought and elbowed the senior in the gut. This allowed him to break free, running down the aisle.
"Why the hell are you here?" He shouted, clambering up onto the dimly lit stage. "You set this up, didn't you?"
"It's not hard to find letters addressed to Naminé here, even though she's been gone for a year." Seifer smirked, already recovered from the injury. "I just needed something to lure you out."
"You're one sick bastard, you know that?" Roxas shouted as he searched for an object to defend himself with, grabbing a nearby broom and swinging it at the ever-advancing Seifer, who grabbed the object and pulled it away from Roxas, throwing it away behind him.
"So I've been told." He grabbed Roxas by the wrists and wrestled him to the ground, pinning him down and running a hand up and down the younger boy's side, eliciting an unwilling shudder from the sophomore.
"Give it up, I said before I didn't want to go out with you, and this isn't helping!" Roxas struggled futilely, earning a grin from above him.
"That's right. I'd nearly forgotten…" Seifer bent down, stealing a quick kiss before leaning to Roxas's ear. "Tell me about this boyfriend of yours."
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Completely forgetting about the rest of his classes, Roxas ran straight out of the building and through the town, no destination set in his mind as his feet pounded against the pavement. He soon found himself at the bike path and his feet settled into a quicker rhythm as he screamed, not needing music to give him the words this time. These were his words that came easily to him; no lyricist he knew of on his iPod could relate to his current situation.
About an hour later, Roxas collapsed against a sign near a park. He'd screamed himself hoarse and he was drenched in sweat, shaking slightly as the wind picked up and dried the thin layer onto his skin. A pair of sneaker-clad feet stopped in front of him, and Roxas really didn't care until he heard his name.
Looking up, he saw the one face he was sure he wouldn't see for a while yet. "Cloud?" He questioned, shivering again slightly. The older blonde took his black jacket off, wrapping it around Roxas and helping him up.
"Come on, you're not sitting out here." Cloud commanded as he led the boy to his car, thankful he'd actually brought it today instead of the motorcycle. Once they were both seated and the heater was on, Roxas began to speak.
"What are you doing here?" He wondered, nesting his face closer into the warm fabric.
Cloud sighed. "Exercising on the bike path, obviously." He said to the windshield. His head tilted slightly as he looked at the passenger seat. "What are you doing here, don't you have school?"
"Don't you have work?" Roxas countered angrily.
"Roxas…" Cloud warned. Both lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. "How's mom?" Cloud finally asked, breaking the calm. Roxas shrunk back against the passenger seat, not willing to talk but knowing he still had to.
"Dad's getting worse." He responded in a small voice. After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence Roxas checked his phone, noting the time. "Uh, not to break up the brotherly love, but can you drive me back to school? My friend's picking me up and he's going to get upset if I'm not there."
Cloud started the car fully, putting it into reverse and pulling into the busy highway traffic. "That reminds me, why were you skipping?" He stated, his tone clearly stating that he didn't approve.
"…stuff happened. I'd rather not talk about it." Roxas squirmed in the seat and pulled his seatbelt on. "I know you don't like me skipping, I've got that memorized."
The driver raised an eyebrow at his little brother, not commenting on the strange speech pattern as he drove the familiar streets towards Twilight. "Would you like my phone number? Next time something happens we can talk about it."
"I think I'll get enough talking from Axel, but sure." Roxas handed his phone to Cloud, who programmed the number in quickly as he drove.
"So who's this Axel?" Cloud turned a final corner, stopping in front of the school at 3:26 PM. He may not have been around as much any more, but he was still concerned with who his little brother spent time with. Some of the people around Twilight weren't the most savory of characters.
"A friend. I spend a lot of time over at his house since, well, you know." Roxas shrugged and put the track jacket over the back of his seat. "Thanks Cloud."
Cloud waved it off. "It was good seeing you, even if you were skipping." He also shrugged and smiled at his little brother. "Take care of yourself."
"I will. Thanks again, I'll call you sometime." Roxas opened the door and retrieved his bag, waving as Cloud drove away. The bus drove up a minute later and Roxas could clearly see spiked red hair through the windows. Roxas stepped on before Axel could get off, scanning his bus pass and taking a seat next to his friend.
"How did today go?" Axel asked, assuming it wasn't too good when Roxas sat a little closer to him than usual.
"Skipped class, saw my brother for the first time in a few years." Roxas shrugged as goosebumps covered his arms, causing him to cover them with his hands. Axel handed him a red zip-up hoodie, which he pulled on thankfully.
"How was it?"
"Better than the rest of the day." Roxas pulled the hood up and hid his mouth in the neck of the oversized clothing item, burying his hands in the pockets. Axel didn't ask, only dragged Roxas's bag over by his feet as a silent promise to carry it upstairs. Roxas leaned sideways, resting his head on Axel's shoulder in also-silent thanks, leaving the redhead to wonder what exactly had happened today.
Cover your face and let's pretend these killing lights won't kill us all again.
Axel sighed and watched the boy he was holding slumber fitfully; he'd taken to sleeping in the upstairs apartment after it was insisted upon that he do so, and considering Axel only had one bed, the pyro was willing to let Roxas sleep in it. The stubborn blonde, however, wouldn't kick the owner of the apartment from his comfortable sleeping space. Of course neither would budge in their argument, leading to the current sleeping arrangements. Thankfully the bed was large enough for the both of them to fit comfortably.
Axel wanted to give Roxas his own room to stay in whenever his parents were going at it, but regretfully his mother only supplied him with enough monthly income to pay the rent, utilities, and buy groceries. After numerous instances of Axel getting caught in the crossfire of her and her husband's fights, she had decided him living elsewhere was better in the long run. Therefore he didn't have a cell phone or car, much less an extra bed for the other boy to sleep in.
Roxas whined again, his nightmare continuing. This was the third time this week he was having nightmares, and it was worrying the redhead. Not to mention Roxas was still getting injuries, the severity of which were increasing daily. Axel wanted to transfer as soon as possible, but the school board's office downtown wasn't able to do so for at least another week.
Axel attempted to smooth Roxas's unruly hair down, whispering softly into his ear. The boy finally settled down, relaxing his death grip on Axel's shirt and mumbling incoherently to himself. Giving a sigh of relief, Axel released the blonde and rolled slightly away from him. He silently resolved to find out what was bothering Roxas so much.
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"I'll pick you up at 3:30, got it memorized?"
"I'm not five, Axel, I can take a bus home by myself."
Axel was walking Roxas to Twilight High School, despite the younger teen's protests. Roxas had no way of knowing what he was doing at night that was causing the redhead to be concerned about his daily activities, and found the short leash he was being kept on irritating.
"Just let me." Axel pleaded, his eyes begging. If he was doing this, it would isolate the time of the incidents to during or after school, and from there on he'd have to wait the time until he transferred before he could take care of anything.
Roxas looked at Axel, eyes confused. "…okay." He relented after a few minutes, searching the taller boy's eyes for the reason he was being so adamant. The bell rang, signaling five minutes until classes began. "But tell me why later."
"Maybe." Axel relented slightly, his mood lightening. His fingertips caught Roxas's momentarily, a new way he'd discovered of telling him goodbye. "I'll see you after school."
The blonde gave him a crooked smile. "Yeah. See you, Axel." The blonde readjusted his messenger bag as he walked up to the school, flipping out his phone and quickly texting to Naminé as he entered the door.
"I'm going to have to get a cell phone…" Axel muttered to himself as he set off toward Hollow Bastion, glad he'd obtained late arrival for himself at the beginning of the year.
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A voice squawked over the loudspeaker, announcing the unfortunate students that were being called to the office. Roxas tuned the obnoxious messages out, opting to doodle in his spare notebook instead.
"Roxas!" A voice called from the front of the room just as said boy was finishing the shading of a chain link.
The blonde looked up at the teacher, alarmed. "Yes, Mr. Leonhart?"
The man frowned at the inattentive student, the scar on his face making the look twice as scary. "You've been ordered to the office immediately. Take your things in case you don't return."
Roxas shrugged, shoving the notebook back into his now empty bag and picking it up from the floor. "Yes sir." He replied, fighting the urge to throw a mock salute and leaving the classroom swiftly. He reached the office in a personal record of three minutes, which was saying something as the school was quite large.
"You've been commissioned to work on a special project." The secretary told him as she handed him a manila envelope and hall pass over the counter. "You're to go to the theatre immediately."
Roxas nodded, exiting the brightly lit office and walking toward the auditorium, which he knew was in the middle of planning for a production by the theater department. He examined the sealed envelope quizzically before sliding his index finger under the flap and ripping it open, foregoing the metal prongs altogether.
Much to his surprise, it had information on a special art project that was addressed to Naminé. He pushed the door to the theater open. "What is this doing here, Nami doesn't even go to Twilight anymore…"
The door slammed shut and a hand was pressed over his mouth, effectively gagging him. "You're gonna tell me about this boyfriend of yours, got it?" Seifer commanded Roxas, who dropped the envelope without a second thought and elbowed the senior in the gut. This allowed him to break free, running down the aisle.
"Why the hell are you here?" He shouted, clambering up onto the dimly lit stage. "You set this up, didn't you?"
"It's not hard to find letters addressed to Naminé here, even though she's been gone for a year." Seifer smirked, already recovered from the injury. "I just needed something to lure you out."
"You're one sick bastard, you know that?" Roxas shouted as he searched for an object to defend himself with, grabbing a nearby broom and swinging it at the ever-advancing Seifer, who grabbed the object and pulled it away from Roxas, throwing it away behind him.
"So I've been told." He grabbed Roxas by the wrists and wrestled him to the ground, pinning him down and running a hand up and down the younger boy's side, eliciting an unwilling shudder from the sophomore.
"Give it up, I said before I didn't want to go out with you, and this isn't helping!" Roxas struggled futilely, earning a grin from above him.
"That's right. I'd nearly forgotten…" Seifer bent down, stealing a quick kiss before leaning to Roxas's ear. "Tell me about this boyfriend of yours."
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Completely forgetting about the rest of his classes, Roxas ran straight out of the building and through the town, no destination set in his mind as his feet pounded against the pavement. He soon found himself at the bike path and his feet settled into a quicker rhythm as he screamed, not needing music to give him the words this time. These were his words that came easily to him; no lyricist he knew of on his iPod could relate to his current situation.
About an hour later, Roxas collapsed against a sign near a park. He'd screamed himself hoarse and he was drenched in sweat, shaking slightly as the wind picked up and dried the thin layer onto his skin. A pair of sneaker-clad feet stopped in front of him, and Roxas really didn't care until he heard his name.
Looking up, he saw the one face he was sure he wouldn't see for a while yet. "Cloud?" He questioned, shivering again slightly. The older blonde took his black jacket off, wrapping it around Roxas and helping him up.
"Come on, you're not sitting out here." Cloud commanded as he led the boy to his car, thankful he'd actually brought it today instead of the motorcycle. Once they were both seated and the heater was on, Roxas began to speak.
"What are you doing here?" He wondered, nesting his face closer into the warm fabric.
Cloud sighed. "Exercising on the bike path, obviously." He said to the windshield. His head tilted slightly as he looked at the passenger seat. "What are you doing here, don't you have school?"
"Don't you have work?" Roxas countered angrily.
"Roxas…" Cloud warned. Both lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. "How's mom?" Cloud finally asked, breaking the calm. Roxas shrunk back against the passenger seat, not willing to talk but knowing he still had to.
"Dad's getting worse." He responded in a small voice. After a few minutes of uncomfortable silence Roxas checked his phone, noting the time. "Uh, not to break up the brotherly love, but can you drive me back to school? My friend's picking me up and he's going to get upset if I'm not there."
Cloud started the car fully, putting it into reverse and pulling into the busy highway traffic. "That reminds me, why were you skipping?" He stated, his tone clearly stating that he didn't approve.
"…stuff happened. I'd rather not talk about it." Roxas squirmed in the seat and pulled his seatbelt on. "I know you don't like me skipping, I've got that memorized."
The driver raised an eyebrow at his little brother, not commenting on the strange speech pattern as he drove the familiar streets towards Twilight. "Would you like my phone number? Next time something happens we can talk about it."
"I think I'll get enough talking from Axel, but sure." Roxas handed his phone to Cloud, who programmed the number in quickly as he drove.
"So who's this Axel?" Cloud turned a final corner, stopping in front of the school at 3:26 PM. He may not have been around as much any more, but he was still concerned with who his little brother spent time with. Some of the people around Twilight weren't the most savory of characters.
"A friend. I spend a lot of time over at his house since, well, you know." Roxas shrugged and put the track jacket over the back of his seat. "Thanks Cloud."
Cloud waved it off. "It was good seeing you, even if you were skipping." He also shrugged and smiled at his little brother. "Take care of yourself."
"I will. Thanks again, I'll call you sometime." Roxas opened the door and retrieved his bag, waving as Cloud drove away. The bus drove up a minute later and Roxas could clearly see spiked red hair through the windows. Roxas stepped on before Axel could get off, scanning his bus pass and taking a seat next to his friend.
"How did today go?" Axel asked, assuming it wasn't too good when Roxas sat a little closer to him than usual.
"Skipped class, saw my brother for the first time in a few years." Roxas shrugged as goosebumps covered his arms, causing him to cover them with his hands. Axel handed him a red zip-up hoodie, which he pulled on thankfully.
"How was it?"
"Better than the rest of the day." Roxas pulled the hood up and hid his mouth in the neck of the oversized clothing item, burying his hands in the pockets. Axel didn't ask, only dragged Roxas's bag over by his feet as a silent promise to carry it upstairs. Roxas leaned sideways, resting his head on Axel's shoulder in also-silent thanks, leaving the redhead to wonder what exactly had happened today.
Cover your face and let's pretend these killing lights won't kill us all again.