AN: I'm sssssssooooooorrrrrrrrrryyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!! I took so long, but I've been so uninspired lately. School started and such, and dad won't let me on on weekdays. But looky, looky, here it is now! You can't hate me that much, right? Anyway, thank you for all the wonderful reviews while I was OoA. In fact, I will thank them by name!
FellowWithTheNeedle
Silver Tears 11
Darkest Soul of Sadness
Kev the She-Wolf
dark and light heart
Sora Keyblader
Riku-Stalker
shad0w0Fn0th1ng
KristinLeann
TheOptimisticPessimist
Tomiko90
weary seer
KayChan4U
Terranai Parker
AllyIsSpecial
Tsuzuki Misaki
Princess Sushi
You've all made me feel so loved!!!!! -Hugs for all- Also, my forum is still open for anyone who wants to go and RPG. Please go, I'm not above begging. It's forlorn and empty there these days and there are some wonderful writers here who I could write some pretty good stories with. Anyway, on with chapter 2! I hope you all enjoy it!
Disclaimer: Me owning Kingdom Hearts goes together like donkeys and trombones!
"I am so kicking your ass!"
"You wish! Oh, look at that, I just passed you."
"What?! You must have cheated!"
"Or I'm just better than you, Sky."
Sora scowled. He hated it when Riku called him by the English translation of his name. The platinum-haired boy knew it was the easiest way to get the brunette all flustered and therefore for him to lose.
I shook my head amusedly. Those two were way too competitive when it came to video games. They even forgot about the rest of us when they were playing. Hayner was sitting on the floor with his back against the couch, drinking soda and watching as Riku's car demolished Sora's. Seifer was sitting on the couch looking bored out of his skull, since if he wasn't the one playing he wasn't interested. And I was sitting on the opposite end, barely paying attention at all. My thoughts kept turning back to Axel.
It was infuriating, the way the redhead had practically taken over my brain. I wanted to be able to focus on other things. I let out a frustrated sigh. I hated crushes.
Hayner seemed to notice my discontent. "Hey, what's wrong Roxas?"
"Hm? Oh, nothing important." Nothing I would share with you guys. I was just thinking about the guy who is dating my sister, and wondering how he would look with his clothes off. A small smirk made its way to my face. I could imagine the looks on their faces if I had said that.
"It's gotta be important, you're all mopey."
"It's nothing, alright?"
Hayner got up and sat down next to me. "Come on, Roxas, we're your friends. Whatever it is, we'll help you."
I thought about it. I didn't have to tell them the whole story necessarily. Besides, I knew they would never let it go. They were good friends like that.
"Fine," I sighed, "I'll tell you. But…no making fun, alright?" It was a childish thing to ask, but I had to. All of them nodded in unison.
"Well…I have a crush on someone."
All of them nodded again like it was the most normal thing in the world. None of them asked who it was, and I was grateful for that.
"The problem is, this…person…is with someone else. And I don't know if they're interested in me. Actually, I don't know them that well. The only thing I know is…" I paused. "Every time I think about them, my heart hurts. And I can't get them out of my head. It's…kinda scary that someone can affect me like this."
There was silence for a minute. Riku and Sora had paused their game to hear my story. I squirmed uncomfortably. Did they know? Had they somehow, inexplicably, realized I was talking about a guy? Did they now hate me?
Finally, Hayner cracked a grin. "Sounds like love to me. I say go for it."
I shook my head. "I told you, they're going out with someone already. And the person that they're going out with is someone I really care about."
Sora gasped. "It's not Kairi, is it?"
"No, no," I reassured him. "It's not. In fact, I don't think you know them."
"Hmm," Hayner tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Well, I still say go for it. Sounds like you really really love this girl. Things like this don't just come along every day. And if this guy she's going out with is any sort of friend, he'll understand."
I smiled. "Thanks, but I think I'll just leave it how it is. If they break up…maybe. But I think the person they're going out with feels just as strongly as I do about this person."
Hayner shrugged and went back to watching Riku and Sora, who had started their game up again. I glanced over at Seifer and almost jumped when I found him staring at me with a calculating look. I quickly looked away and forced myself to watch the TV screen.
Later that night, while everyone else was asleep, I was lying awake, thinking. Mostly about Axel, but also about Seifer. Why had he been looking at me like that? I knew Seifer well enough to know that he was a lot smarter than he looked. And he knew how to get information. I had only ever seen him give that look when he was trying to be intimidating, but I'd never been on the receiving end.
After a while, I figured I wasn't going to be getting any sleep tonight, so I got up and went into the kitchen. I knew my way around Sora's kitchen like it was my own, and decided to make myself some tea to calm my nerves.
I settled down at the table with a cup of steaming chamomile. I closed my eyes and drank in the smell and the warmth of it before taking a tiny sip. It helped, a lot. I found myself not wanting to open my eyes, it felt so nice.
"Enjoying yourself?"
My eyes snapped open. Seifer was standing in the doorway, his arms crossed and smirking. He looked the picture of cool. I never knew how he could always do that, and vowed to ask him some day.
"Uh…what are you doing up?" It was the only thing I could think of asking.
"I could ask you the same thing," he said, sitting down in the chair across the table from me.
I shrugged. "Oh, you know. Just couldn't sleep." I sighed. "This tea is really good. Want some?"
"It's not yours to offer," he chuckled. "Don't want any anyway. I was never a big tea person."
I nodded and took another sip. We fell into silence, but it wasn't quite uncomfortable.
Seifer drummed his fingers on the table. By now, the tea had become cool enough to drink without fear of burning. He waited until I took a big gulp before saying, "Was it just me, or, in your story earlier, did you ever say it was a girl that you liked?"
I choked on the tea. I had to set down the mug and started coughing. Seifer pounded me on the back a few times. Finally, spluttering and gasping, I managed to spit out, "W-what?!"
He chuckled at me. "So I was right. You always said 'person' when you were talking about them. So, tell me, who is he?"
My face must have been glowing. "Uh…I-I don't know why you would think that…"
"Cut the crap, Roxas." Suddenly, the chuckling, joking, good-natured Seifer was gone. In his place was a serious, more menacing Seifer. "Who is he?"
I didn't dream of trying to get out of it this time. That would only make Seifer even madder. And making Seifer mad was not a good thing to do. "He's…this guy my sister started going out with." I sighed. "I knew him before, but…I'd never talked to him." I looked up at Seifer and was relieved to find he had a small smile on his face again, one filled with kindness instead of malice.
"Those feeling you talked about, they were real?"
I nodded. "I know it's stupid to feel like that for someone so soon, but I do." I shrugged. "Besides, it's just a crush. It'll go away soon."
Seifer sighed. "You really can't see love when it's right in front of you, can you? Look, Roxas, I know you love your sister, but if you just tell her…"
"She doesn't know I'm…you know." I sighed. "Can you imagine dropping that kind of bombshell, then asking for a chance with someone she really likes herself?"
"I guess that's true…" He drummed his fingers on the table again. "So, if she doesn't know, who else knows?"
"Just Olette…and now you, I guess. You really don't care?"
Seifer shrugged. "Why should I? Besides, my brother's gay."
Whoa, that was a surprise. "Cloud's gay? Really?"
"Yeah. He's never had a long-term relationship, and he's not open about it, but he is." Seifer shrugged. "Anyway, you're my friend and that shouldn't change just because you like men."
I smiled appreciatively. "Thanks. Sorry I didn't tell you guys sooner, but…it's not the easiest thing to admit. You're not gonna tell the others, are you?"
He smirked and leaned forward to ruffle my hair. "Don't worry, Rox. Your secret is safe with me."
A wave of relief washed through me. It was actually nice that someone else knew. I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I drained the rest of my tea and got up to put the mug in the sink. "I'm going back to bed. I think I can sleep now."
Seifer nodded and followed me back to the living room. He lay down at his respective spot and I laid down at mine. I felt sleep begin to grip at me and smiled. But I couldn't help the image of Axel's head from popping into my mind one more time before I fell asleep.
When I woke up the next morning, I couldn't remember what I'd dreamt. But I knew it had been sweeter than any dream I'd ever had.