Author's Note: And...that's all she wrote! Thanks guys, this is the end of OtaPGS, sorry to those who wanted more, it was meant to be a oneshot, as so many of my fics are, lol. And I hope no one wants to smack Roxas anymore. XD

I feel like this whole thing was kinda Love Stinks in reverse. XD

Chapter 6 ~ And Once You Trip, You're Bound to Fall

For a month, Axel didn't hear from Roxas. His phone didn't ring, and there were no texts from Destiny. He took to hanging out there in all his free time, just in case the bartenders weren't paying enough attention and missed Roxas. But Roxas didn't come.

Axel cried to his fag hag – metaphorically speaking, because he didn't really cry…at least, not much – and Larxene hugged him some more and even managed to keep the "I told you sos" mostly to herself…but somehow it didn't help much. Not for long, anyway. When he went to sleep, his bed felt so painfully empty and his apartment so hollow and quiet that whatever comfort Larxene had given him was gone, just like that, vanished and forgotten and not at all useful for helping him stop the sniffles. All he could do was muffle them with his pillow.

Eventually, Axel even cried – again, metaphorically – to his brother, but Reno's solution was just to persistently try to set him up on blind dates with some guys he knew who he was "pretty sure" were gay. Axel was pretty sure they weren't, they were just socially awkward and Reno couldn't tell the difference, and anyway, he didn't want to just go out and get laid, but Reno couldn't get that idea through his head either.

"You don't want to fuck a dude? Why? Why wouldn't you want to fuck a dude? Oh hey! Are you finally turning straight? Dude, you should just say so! Do you have any idea how many girls I could get you for this weekend? You could line them up and take your fucking pick…"

Axel gave up talking to Reno.

Out of options, Axel cried not-so-metaphorically to his pillow…or, more accurately, to the extra blanket he still kept in his bed, even though he didn't need it anymore and probably never would again. But that was a secret – the blanket and the crying – and he'd never tell a soul about it. It sucked bad enough to be broken-hearted. Axel didn't like feeling like a total weenie on top of that. He was a man, damn it. He really, honestly never cried – except when Bambi's mother died, but fuck, he had a heart – but right now, he couldn't help it.

So he abused a stereotype and told himself it was okay because he was gay, sensitive, and not offended by stereotypes right now.

After a month, his phone rang. It was Roxas.

Axel nearly suffered a fatal heart attack on the spot, and he dropped his phone trying to answer it. He tried very, very hard to sound cool, friendly, and nonchalant. "H-hey, Roxas?"

"Yeah. Hi, Axel."

Oh God he called me, oh my God oh my God, "Hi! What's, um, the occasion?" Shit. That was lame. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck…

"I was wondering…if you're free this afternoon, can you meet me?"

~o~

Not five minutes after hanging up the phone, Roxas was surprised to see Axel arrive at the coffee shop. Granted, he'd called from here, a block down from Destiny and three from Axel's apartment, but he'd said "any time this afternoon" and he'd figured on hanging out a while with his coffee and laptop until Axel was free. But apparently, Axel was free right now. Roxas swallowed the little flutter in his stomach when he wondered if maybe it was because of him…

And then he swallowed another flutter that was a little more intense when he looked at Axel and realized that not seeing the guy for a month had made him forget – just a tiny bit – how hot Axel was. How does a guy like that even notice a guy like me?

Axel sat down with his usual friendly smile – but maybe it was because for once, Roxas was really paying attention…he could see the faint strain around the edges of Axel's smile, the slight fidgeting as he settled himself at the table. Is he nervous? Over…over meeting me? Roxas was about to open his mouth and say something when the waitress popped up, asking what Axel wanted. Axel distractedly ordered coffee. It didn't take especially sharp observation skills this time to pick up on his jitters. Roxas found himself suppressing a smile. I guess that's…love…after all. He felt some of his own nervousness fade. Doubts about whether Axel would still be interested in him – Roxas had made him wait a month, after all – suddenly had their answer. A few of his fears faded away.

"So…how've you been? Careful!" Roxas interrupted himself as Axel went to swallow his coffee. "That's hot…" Axel blinked, realizing he'd almost burned the inside of his mouth blistery by not paying attention, and he blushed a little, slowly pushing the coffee away.

"Oh…yeah. Thanks." He glanced up at Roxas. "Yeah, I've been…uh, you know."

"I see," Roxas answered. Axel's grin was a little rueful – it made Roxas feel a pang of regret. He really wished he could have given Axel some kind of certain answer sooner than this but…he'd needed to make sure things were ready. And he'd needed to be sure. And now that he was, he hadn't wasted any time before calling Axel.

"Um, how about you?" Axel tried hopefully. He was slowly beginning to relax, getting less stiff – collecting himself and calming down. Even if the calm wasn't perfect, he was working on it.

Roxas paused a moment, considering his answer. Then, he smiled gently. "I've…missed you." It was more than a little cute how Axel visibly caught his breath at that. Roxas continued, getting straight to the point now, "I'm sorry it took me so long to call you. I needed…some time. To make sure of things. I'm sorry I couldn't give you an answer sooner."

Axel shook his head a little, brows furrowed. "No, it's fine…I didn't, uh, really expect to hear from you again at all, so it's really okay."

What? He thought I'd just disappear after he told me how he felt? Damn. We really need to get to know each other better. Roxas sighed. "Thanks…but I wouldn't do that. You deserve an answer, Axel."

The man's voice was a little breathless now. "Okay." Furtive green glances kept darting up to Roxas' face, then away again – Axel was still nervous. Roxas figured maybe he should just get this out quickly so Axel could start to calm down.

"Yeah. Right, well…um, Axel, I wanted to tell you…I'm not gonna be calling you up like that anymore. You know," his voice dropped discreetly, considering the location, "just for a fuck." Axel blinked at him as Roxas finished. "We're not sex friends anymore, or whatever. I want us to pretend that never happened."

"Oh." Axel's face fell, his eyes empty and shattered, and Roxas immediately realized he needed to choose his words better. Yet more evidence that they both really needed some quality time around each other, outside of the bedroom. Shit.

"So if that's okay," he plowed ahead quickly, "I was wondering what you're doing this weekend. Are you free Friday night?"

Green eyes blinked at him blankly. Axel seemed thoroughly startled and confused by the question. "Um…yeah, I think I'm free Friday…"

Roxas just spat it out. "Would you like to have dinner with me?"

Axel's expression stayed frozen for another moment, then began to dissolve into…hesitant realization. Like he thought he understood, but he wasn't sure. Like maybe something was too good to be true. Roxas felt a little prickle of warmth in his chest. So maybe I can read him a little. Maybe all that time in bed together had helped him understand Axel after all. Just in some ways. A tiny bit.

The other man was slowly nodding, still unable to find words – still unsure – and Roxas quickly added, "You should know…if you go to dinner with me on Friday, I'm going to call you next week and ask you out again. And then the week after that – or the following week, at the latest – I'm gonna invite you to dinner at my parents' house. So they can meet you."

That seemed to snap Axel out of his incredulous daze for a moment. Green eyes blinked sharply at Roxas. "Huh? Meet your…parents? But…"

"Why not?" Roxas cut him off. "They always want to meet the people I date. They have a right to be introduced to my…my boyfriend."

Axel's face went red from his hairline to his shirt collar. Roxas promptly blushed too – it was unbelievable how cute that was, how much it made him want to reach across the table and just kiss Axel right there.

After a moment, Axel managed to find his voice. "You…you don't have to do that, Roxas. I mean, it's a big step and…and I don't mind. You don't have to push yourself for my sake or anything…"

"Axel." Roxas thought he could see where this was going. "It's not that. Listen…" How do I explain this for him? "Okay. I do have some commitment issues, probably. I haven't had much luck in relationships so far. So yeah, I wasn't ready. Before. But that's what this past month has been about, for me. I've been…working on some things. Figuring out what I want. And I called you today because…I'm ready, and I want to do this. I…I like you, Axel, and I want to get to know you better. I want to try to be something with you. And you should know…this is how I work. I've already told my parents that…that the next romantic interest I bring home won't be a girl. So I'm serious about this. I like you, and I want to have a relationship with you. I want to start over and do things right."

Axel looked positively stunned. He took a long, deep breath…and nothing came out. Then Roxas added, as a quick afterthought, "If you're interested, that is."

Two heavy swallows later, Axel finally found his voice. There was a tense, forced sort of casual lightness in his tone as Axel weakly ginned and answered, "Y-yeah…yeah, I'm interested. Definitely…interested."

The nervous, happy flutter that rose up in Roxas' stomach was almost immediately put down again by a thought that made his smile turn a little wry. "Okay, good. But um, you have to work on something for me, Axel." Green eyes blinked, but Roxas just continued without waiting for the man to ask. "You really need to try to be more honest about your feelings and stuff. I mean, keeping important shit to yourself is just not gonna work. I need you to tell me things or I won't know, you know?" Axel was just staring intently at him, and it was making Roxas a little flustered, nervous. Making him ramble a bit. "Like, I know it's not easy and all, to bring that stuff up. Honestly, I have never started those 'let's-talk-about-our-feelings' conversations. Always waited until my girlfriend brought it up. So I understand it's tough, but seriously, shit falls apart if certain things don't get discussed at some point, and the really important feelings definitely need to come out, so I'll work on this too and all, but you gotta promise me not to keep things to yourself like you were doing before. With the acting all cool and leaving me to guess and…"

Roxas' rambling was stopped dead right there as Axel launched himself across the table – utensils and condiments clattering and a paper menu falling to the floor – and then Roxas found his face being grabbed and his lips being kissed so hard and hot and suddenly that he was frozen with shock for a moment. His jaw dropped and his eyes bugged as Roxas was torn between embarrassment – knowing they were in public and now being stared at – and a mind-numbingly fast rush of heat sweeping through his body because Axel instantly stuck his tongue in Roxas' mouth and oh my God, yes, I forgot he tasted like this! Fucking…unngh!

Then, just as quickly, Axel pulled back, but only an inch or so, and his voice was rough and raw and gave Roxas goosebumps at the intensity. "You wanna know the truth? I'm crazy about you, I'm stupid with love for you, I wanna be your boyfriend so bad I'd do anything, and hearing you ask me out makes me so happy I could cry. Seriously." Roxas blinked in shock at Axel, still not two inches away from his face, and then cracked a grin as Axel chuckled weakly, "And now I'm scared shitless to meet your parents and I'm sorry if getting kissed in public embarrasses you but I don't care, I don't care about any of that because I fucking love you and this is awesome."

Being reminded of their location didn't help much, and Roxas just knew he was flushing like crazy now that he was fully aware of all the eyes on them, but he decided to put all that aside – just for a second – and focus on the more important things Axel had just said. Like the love part, and the effort Axel was making to be honest about his feelings – which Roxas really did appreciate.

So he tipped his head forward and bumped Axel's forehead lightly with his own and even managed to work up the nerve to touch Axel's lips with his own in a soft, quick kiss. "God, you're cute," he murmured through a little grin.

Axel giggled a little manically, his fingers digging into Roxas' hair with fitful tugs and caresses. "Am I cute enough to take home with you?"

Roxas laughed and got up, nudging Axel to follow as he dropped more than enough money on the table and hurried them both out of the café in an effort to lose the audience. "Well," he hesitantly answered once they were on the street, "to be honest, I was planning on starting off a little slower this time around. So maybe you could wait until our second date? We'll do a restaurant on Friday, and then the following weekend I'll have you over and cook for you. How does that sound?"

Looking perfectly giddy, Axel answered, "If you had me over for burnt toast in a month I'd be thrilled. That…sounds wonderful."

Hoping his cheeks weren't getting too red again, Roxas bumped himself sideways, shoulder against Axel's arm. Then he changed the subject. "So…may I walk you home?"

"So you can protect me from all the bad men who might take advantage of me?" Axel grinned with delight. "Yes, pretty please."

Roxas rolled his eyes and walked Axel home. They got a little tangled up at Axel's door…or a lot tangled, probably. It certainly took them a while to figure out how to pull apart. Axel's face was flushed when they finally did, his lips shining with saliva and his eyes glazed. "Ohhh, baby, you sure you don't wanna come in for a bit?"

I wanna "come," hell yeah, oh God I want it, fuck… The door was right there, and it had been a month, and his mind and body were screaming at him to just do it, do it, hurry up right now… But Roxas forced himself to ignore the intense urge. "I'll…uh, I'll call you about Friday, okay?"

Axel stuck his tongue back in Roxas' mouth. Roxas sucked on it until he absolutely had to stop – if he let this go on any longer, he was going to fuck Axel hot and fast and hard and damn the consequences. So, trying to ignore the tightness in his pants and the way his whole body was tingling and craving more, Roxas pulled back. Axel moaned pathetically. Roxas wanted to do the same.

"Seriously, Friday," he panted. "Dinner. I'll call. We've got lots of time, I promise. I'll um," he backed up a step to keep himself from latching onto Axel again. "I'll see you later, kay?"

Axel slumped against his doorframe, but his eyes sparkled at Roxas, who was still backing away slowly, and he giggled. "You're my boyfriend."

Nodding, feeling the silly grin on his own face as well, Roxas answered breathlessly. "Yeah. You too. I have a…I have a boyfriend." Shit, I don't believe that. Wow.

Biting his lip hard, Axel lifted a hand in a weak wave. "See you Friday, boyfriend."

Roxas went red, waved back, and fled. He absolutely had to get out of there right now, or he really was going to fuck Axel. Probably three times in a row.

Feeling lightheaded with excitement and a little bit disbelieving and a whole lot nervous, Roxas headed home. He tried to wrap his mind around the concept the whole way. I have a boyfriend. I have a boyfriend. Axel is my boyfriend. Fucking hell. He was scared to death. It was amazing.

~o~

Axel had one hell of a raging boner, but he found a way to jump up and down all over his apartment, a hand clapped over his mouth to keep from screaming for the whole complex to hear, He asked me out, he asked me out, Roxas is my boyfriend! Then he called Larxene, and almost screamed – but managed a hoarse, manic whisper instead – "Larx-oh-my-fucking-God-I'm-dating-Roxas-gotta-go-b ye!" Then for a split second he thought about calling his brother and gloating, but that didn't seem as important as certain other needs, so he masturbated on the couch instead, a huge, idiotic grin plastered on his face the whole time.

Then he got up and cleaned up in a hurry, because he was seriously late for work.

~o~

Friday night was a lovely night, and their dinner date was perfect, and it was exactly what Roxas had hoped for – a chance to sit and talk and get to know his new boyfriend a little better as a person. All his agonizing nervousness finally disappeared when they were together again, and it turned out that they could talk to each other, they had several mutual interests, and there were no awkward silences – Roxas had been tormented by the fear of awkward silence all week. He just didn't know what he'd do if it turned out that they didn't have much to talk about… But all that was forgotten – along with the time – when they were finally actually on the date. And the fact that they talked until the restaurant closed and had to apologetically give their waitress an extra large tip to make up for monopolizing her table all night…just made Roxas twenty times happier.

He was happy that he and Axel both liked the arts. He was happy that Axel loved cats. He was happy that Axel did his own taxes and was pretty good with numbers and budgets for a theater guy – and therefore would not need Roxas to help him with that crap. He was just very, very happy…and he liked Axel, and he was glad he did, because he wanted to like Axel. He didn't think he'd ever been so eager to fall for someone. Naturally, it helped that every time he looked up, those green eyes were giving him a look that was far too easy to read – adoring.

It also helped that Roxas had given himself lots of time to think about this, because now he was so much more ready. He knew what he wanted, and it wasn't just a fuck buddy to waste time with. Really, come to think of it, he had never honestly wanted that in the first place…he just hadn't been quite prepared to make a commitment to another guy, and he'd probably jumped into the whole gay sex thing a little faster than he should have – yay alcohol. His whole life, his parents had emphasized the importance of commitment, and as a result, Roxas wasn't the sort of person who could just sleep around casually. He'd hoped, for a while, that maybe he could be like that, because maybe it was the solution to his faltering love life…but this was better.

Now, his parents knew. They had been surprised, but they promised their support, if Roxas was sure. And Roxas had done some self-examination too, and now he was sure – he was ready to give this a shot, and if it wasn't right, he would know soon enough. But…he hoped it would work. He wanted to be happy, of course, but now…he wanted it to work because he wanted Axel to be happy, too. And he was so, so pleased that they got along, and had things they could build a friendship on, because he wanted this to last. He'd missed having Axel in his life this past month, and it went beyond the sex. He'd missed morning coffee with the guy, and the way he flirted, and the sound of his voice and his big hands and his smile. It was really good to see Axel again.

By the end of the date, Roxas was feeling much more confident in their chances. They'd had fun, behaved themselves and talked like two grown men, and parted afterward without even jumping each other. Not that Roxas hadn't been thinking about things like that – sticking his tongue in Axel's mouth, or his hand down Axel's pants, or certain parts of his body in certain parts of Axel's… Not. Yet. Damn. It. Oh, the thoughts had been there, driving him crazy, but Roxas had controlled himself – barely. He kept chanting in his head, like a mantra – Save it for the second date, save it for the second date.

And really, if he could wait even longer, that would be even better. Give him more time to get to know Axel as a friend, outside of the bedroom. When Roxas made it through the first date without dragging Axel into the men's room, an alley, his car, or any other semi-private location, he began to think maybe his self-control was awesome enough to last even longer.

~o~

Over the week following their first date, Roxas realized he had slightly overestimated his ability to control his libido. Either that, or he had underestimated the effect of a month's abstinence. But then, he'd recently gone over two years without sex, so logically, one month should not have had him this desperate. Clearly, it was Axel's fault – the sudden burning intensification of Roxas' lust as soon as Axel entered his apartment for their second date was all the confirmation he needed for that theory – and Roxas said as much over dinner, when they were seated across from each other over Roxas' kitchenette table. Axel blinked at him, green eyes surprised a moment before he smirked.

"So it's my fault you're horny?"

"Yep." Roxas eyed the other man, who looked utterly delicious in that dress shirt. Roxas had never seen anyone look so hot. He felt rather feverish and lightheaded.

"Well you know," Axel purred softly, "I can take care of that for you…I can do anything you want. But you're the one who said we have to wait."

He grinned back. "Yeah, we have to wait. I'm not that good at cooking and I'm proud of how this chicken turned out, so we're eating it. So stop making me even hornier, or there will be paybacks." He winked, slipping his right foot out of his shoe, already guessing what Axel's response would be.

"Oh yeah?" A red eyebrow arched. "What would that…uh…" He faltered as Roxas' sock-covered foot trailed up the inside of the other man's pant leg. "…Um…look…like…" Axel gasped, his eyes going unfocused as Roxas pressed his foot carefully over his boyfriend's groin. "God damn it you tease…" he whispered helplessly.

Smirking a little, but breathing hard himself, Roxas wiggled his toes as he carefully rubbed Axel's cock with his foot. Axel was hard almost at once, and Roxas let his foot nestle comfortably against his boyfriend's erection, casually pretending he wasn't just as hard himself – because Axel couldn't see the tent Roxas was pitching without looking under the table, and considering his condition, it would probably be a little uncomfortable for the redhead to bend that way. Roxas licked his lips as Axel panted and stared at him, and he took a slow bite of chicken…tongue dragging over the fork sensually.

Axel groaned, his hands shaking a little, and he almost dropped his knife. "You…God, Roxas, do you have any idea what you do to me?"

Forcing himself to keep eating calmly, Roxas softly answered, "I think I have an idea." He wiggled his toes a little again, pointing out some of the evidence that had clued him in. Axel grunted. Roxas concluded, "The question is, do you know what you do to me?"

Green eyes sparkled at him through their haze of lust. "Not really…are you saying I should find out?"

Shrugging, Roxas took a sip of wine. "If you're curious."

Apparently, Axel was curious. Roxas was not surprised by the foot that rubbed up the inside of his leg in return, but he was a little startled by how quickly Axel had gotten his shoe off. And then he went weak all over as heat flooded him when Axel's foot found his groin and repaid the torture, toe-wiggling and all.

They looked at each other, both hard, both aware, both touching, panting, flushing… And Axel swallowed. "We're going to have sex tonight, right? That's what you said? This is the second date…right?"

Roxas tried to answer lightly, but his voice was a bit low and rough, "Eat your chicken, Axel."

"But are we going to have sex tonight?" The man pressed, voice weak. "Please say yes…"

Continuing to eat, calm on the surface, Roxas remarked, "Not before we finish dinner, at least." He slowly, neatly cut another bite of chicken. Axel shuddered and attempted to handle his own silverware with the same finesse. They ate in burning silence for a moment before Roxas glanced up, swallowing before he continued in the same calm tone, "We're going to have sex tonight, Axel. When we're done eating, I'm taking you into my bedroom, and we're going to strip naked and fuck each other raw, until we can't walk or think or speak or do anything other than pass out. I'm going to scream your name until I'm hoarse, and you're going to scream mine too, while you're coming inside me. In short, yes, we are having sex tonight."

Axel gasped and clamped his thighs together around Roxas' foot, shivering and breathing hard for several minutes. When he finally looked up, his eyes were glazed. "Oh God…I almost came. You almost talked me to orgasm, Roxas."

Feeling his face burn a bit with a pleased blush, Roxas answered, "Noted. I'll have to take the 'almost' out of that statement one of these days."

"Jesus," Axel breathed.

"It's Roxas, actually," the blond smirked. God, I forgot it feels like this… Watching the effect he had on Axel, knowing he made another man hurt with desire – it was intoxicating. And it was nice to know that, whatever other fears he might have about changing his sexuality, he didn't need to worry about the sex. He'd had a good teacher from the start, but Roxas thought he should also give himself some credit for being naturally talented. Between the two, he now had a lot of sexual confidence – at least when it came to Axel. And it helped to have one thing he wasn't the least bit nervous about anymore.

On the contrary, he was really very…eager.

He was trying to calmly eat his dinner, pretending to ignore Axel's foot on his crotch, or the hot shape of Axel's erection only a few layers of fabric away from his own foot. He was succeeding in seeming calm, but it was taking all his willpower not to let his hands tremble. Axel kept glancing up at him with hot eyes, and he couldn't stop himself from sneaking glances as well, and they'd more or less given up the pretense of conversation now. Roxas didn't trust his voice enough to try talking. He felt like if he opened his mouth for anything other than another bite of food, whatever words he might plan to say would come out as a desperate moan of "Fuck me. Now."

He didn't know what Axel was thinking, exactly, but he could see that the man was sweating. The candlelight glistened on the sheen of moisture that made Roxas think of bare bodies and heat and trickling sweat and licking the salty flavor up, trailing his tongue over every gorgeous inch of Axel's body…

Roxas swallowed the rest of his wine and assessed their plates. They were both nearly finished…and he didn't think he could do this anymore.

There was a clink as Axel set down his silverware, overly careful to not just drop it. "Roxas…I can't do this anymore." Green eyes met blue. "Thank you for dinner. It was delicious. And by the way, you're killing me, and you know why?" Axel waited for a moment. Roxas opened his mouth to answer something about erections being only so bearable… Wait. I want to hear what he says. He closed his mouth again and shook his head. Axel looked right into his eyes. "Because I'm in love with you. I love you, and all I want is to hold you and show you how I feel about you. I can't stop thinking about it."

Stunned, Roxas couldn't think of anything to say to that. So, after a moment, he just nodded and stood. It broke their intimate contact, but also gave Axel an excellent view of where he'd been touching. Roxas waited until green eyes found their way back to his face. He knew he was smiling and he couldn't stop, he could only try to make it sultry instead of goofily happy. He didn't know if it worked, but at least his voice definitely cooperated, coming out husky with desire, "Well…then maybe you should do something about that." With that invitation, he turned and headed for his room, leaving it up to Axel to follow.

Axel almost knocked his chair over, by the sound of it. Before Roxas made it all the way to his bedroom, he was stopped suddenly by warm, strong arms wrapping around him from behind, pulling him close in a crushing hug, big hands tugging in his hair and running down his body and caressing him and touching him… And Roxas turned around in Axel's arms and grabbed him and kissed him painfully hard and dragged him through the bedroom doorway by his shirt, which Roxas tore off him right after that. And then they were both going after each other's clothing with a vengeance, like the fabric had somehow offended them and deserved to die.

They were much happier when they were both naked. At least, Roxas felt like things were going right for the first time in many weeks, and by Axel's grin and the size of his boner, Roxas guessed his opinion was shared.

Then Axel threw Roxas down on his own bed, and Roxas stopped thinking about anything but Axel and kissing and hands and sweat and fucking, fucking, fucking with Axel above him and inside him and all over him and moaning so hard he was almost sobbing with pleasure, and Roxas did everything he'd said he would and screamed until his lost his voice. Axel's grip was so tight on Roxas' hips as they came that there was no way Roxas wasn't bruised, and he didn't give a shit. He was happy. He was the happiest man-fucked, ex-straight guy in the country. At least. And it was partially because he'd been waiting to do that with Axel for a very long time, and partially because Axel was kissing over his shoulder sweetly and hugging him close, and partially because now he was satisfied, and being satisfied meant he was no longer too distracted by lust to carry on a conversation.

"You…" Roxas' voice cracked and died, and he grinned a big, stupid grin and continued in a dry whisper. "You jerk. You weren't supposed to fuck me that hard the first time."

Between kisses, Axel murmured into his mouth, "Sorry…but…you were…too hot. And…does that mean…we're going to…do it again?"

Roxas had to wait a few minutes until Axel stopped kissing him and moved to nuzzle his neck instead. Then he could whisper again, "Well, I had planned for at least twice…and I was hoping now that I'm your boyfriend, you might let me explore some of those…reserved places." He winked at Axel, watching the memory hit the other man. That time I asked if he ever bottoms…

Axel's face, already sex-flushed red, went a couple shades darker as he beamed and ducked his head shyly. His voice was a husky whisper in return, lips brushing Roxas' ear, "I'm all yours now, baby. You can have whatever you want. Just say when."

Roxas giggled voicelessly and hugged him. "Well I can't do it now, not anymore at least. Can't move at all. Need a drink…"

Green eyes went wide as Axel looked up quickly. "Oh, I got that! I'll get it for you, hang on a sec." Then he fumbled and tumbled out of bed, and Roxas bit his lip and smirked as he eyed his boyfriend's pale ass. Just you wait. I'll get you yet, you sexy little bottom. Just keep jiggling like that. See if I don't leave you sore in a day or two.

Axel disappeared and reappeared with water for them both in large, tall glasses. The drink helped Roxas get his voice back a bit – still hoarse though – and they lay in bed together, chatting happily and easily now that all the tension had been dealt with.

"God damn, I was like…this close to grabbing you and fucking you on the kitchen table," Axel admitted with a sigh and a grin. Roxas returned the smile.

"I was ready to drag you to the floor." He winked. "I'd have gone for the table too, but those are my dishes and I wouldn't want to break any."

Axel snorted. "It would appear, oh lover mine, that we are not cut out for this abstinence thing." He kissed Roxas briefly as the blond hummed in agreement. Then he continued, "Though I am curious to know why we had to find this out the hard way. I could have predicted the difficulty, if you were just curious."

Shrugging one shoulder, Roxas answered, "Well…I wanted a chance to just talk and get to know each other better. But I guess we can do that better with sex in the equation than without it."

"Mmm, everything is better with sex in the equation…" Axel hummed.

"Right," Roxas grinned. "Whatever. Just as long as I know more about you – things that I can share with others in polite conversation – by the time I introduce you to my parents. Speaking of, how does next weekend look for you?"

Rubbing one hand over his face and smiling weakly, Axel answered, "It's free, for you…I can't believe you're serious though. Meeting your parents this soon…when I thought you weren't even ready to tie yourself down to one guy…damn, Roxas."

Combing fingers through damp red hair, Roxas answered, matter-of-fact, "I don't do closets." Then he pecked the tip of Axel's nose before adding, as an afterthought, "And it would have been sooner, actually, but my grandmother's been sick a lot lately, and she was back in the hospital for a few days, and then I didn't want to spring the news on my family until they'd had a chance to recover from that…" He shrugged. "I'd have called you two weeks earlier, if not for that."

Axel looked a little bit dazed. "I'm…sorry about your grandmother." His eyes were half-lidded and fixed on Roxas' lips. "Is she…uh…gonna be okay?"

Roxas almost laughed, reading pretty easily what Axel was really thinking about. "Oh, she's fine," he answered quickly, then pushed his lips onto Axel's and kissed his boyfriend sensually. They kept that up for a bit, and when Roxas finally pulled back he winked at Axel, who was breathing heavily. "Did that help make up for two lost weeks?" He purred.

His boyfriend groaned. "It's a start."

Teasing, Roxas prodded, "A good start?"

Axel grinned, grabbed him, and rolled onto his back, pulling Roxas on top of him. "A pretty good start." Then he pecked Roxas' lips. "So what's next?"

Brushing a few stray red hairs away from Axel's face, Roxas smiled coyly. "Tomorrow I'm going to explore my new boyfriend bedroom privileges, but for now…" He winked and let his fingers play over Axel's face, tracing features and tattoos teasingly. "Why don't you tell me about your family?"

And, although Axel called Roxas every kind of tease in the book, they did eventually settle down and get involved in a long, laid-back talk. They talked until they were nodding off, eyes shut and words coming slower, until they finally agreed it was time to sleep and curled up together and dropped off minutes later, warm and content and happy.

~o~

Epilogue: Have a Nice Trip, See You Next Fall

~o~

It was a week later, at Roxas' parents' house over dinner, that Roxas tripped. After several months of pure physical attraction and a few weeks of dating – during which time Roxas found himself thinking Axel was cuter and cuter as he got to know him better – Roxas was absolutely certain that he liked Axel a lot. He knew the feeling wasn't the same as what Axel felt for him, but since Axel was happy, Roxas figured it was enough for now.

So they had dates on the weekends, and phone calls during the week even though they were both busy, and Roxas figured out that he could often hang around at Axel's theater with his laptop while the pyrotechnician was setting things up or running through rehearsals, and it gave them more time to see each other, because Axel could come sit with him whenever he had a free minute, and they could talk a little. But really, even if they hadn't been able to talk, it helped just to see Axel during the week and see what he was doing. It made them feel closer, more connected.

By the time dinner with Roxas' parents rolled around, they both knew a lot more about each other than they had just a few weeks ago, plenty of which could be brought up in polite conversation. It helped, because Roxas' parents had lots of questions for Axel in particular – polite and conversational, of course – and they sat around with coffee for quite some time after dinner, still chatting.

Roxas wasn't even paying attention to the questions when he picked up the creamer for his coffee, asking his mom offhand, "Just half and half again?"

"Oh, yeah sorry sweetie. I forgot to get your kind at the store today."

"That's okay." He shrugged it off.

Axel interjected a moment later, "French Vanilla flavored, right?"

His mom was answering, "Yes, his father and I don't like it, and I never have it around anymore, now that he's moved out."

Glancing up, Roxas remembered that detail and remarked to his parents, "Oh yeah, Axel buys the same flavor that I like. What a coincidence, huh?"

His parents were humming their agreement when Axel spoke, a little slowly, "Well…it's not really…"

Blinking at his boyfriend, Roxas prodded, "What do you mean? I thought you liked it; you always have it and use it."

To his surprise, Axel ducked his head a bit, a pink flush spreading over his face as he smiled shyly. Roxas was slightly transfixed by how adorable that was. Green eyes glanced over at him, then away. "You actually mentioned it the first time you, um, were over for coffee." After hooking up with a strange man in a bar and spending the night together, Roxas' mind supplied promptly. "I only had milk at the time, and you mentioned something about French Vanilla creamer, so I started buying it." He fidgeted with his coffee mug a bit as Roxas tried not to stare…and mostly stared anyway.

Not wanting to say anything in front of his parents, Roxas hesitantly asked, "What, just wanted to try it?" Has to be. We had no plans to see each other again, not at first. Easy answer.

Axel just shrugged and nodded, "Yeah, I guess." That ended the conversation, but Roxas wasn't fooled. There was something evasive in Axel's expression, in the way he looked away when he said it. Roxas frowned – he knew Axel well enough, at least, to see through that. But the conversation moved on to other things, for a few minutes, so he dropped it – at least, until his mother went to get something from the kitchen and then called a question to his father, who got up and joined her so as not to yell the answer back. This left him alone with Axel for the briefest moment, and Roxas didn't hesitate to ask what had been on his mind.

His voice was a quick whisper. "Did you buy the creamer for me? Before you even knew if you'd ever see me again?"

Ducking his head, Axel flushed even darker than before. "I really…really hoped I would…" Green eyes glanced up to meet Roxas' for just a moment – a moment that confirmed everything Roxas couldn't quite believe.

And in that moment of shock, Roxas tripped over Axel – over the guy he was and the way he loved – and he fell for him. All the confused denials and disbeliefs in his mind faded into silence, replaced by one solid, bright certainty. Oh. My God. I love him.

"You dork…" He breathed, and then his parents were back and dinner and coffee were continuing. Axel smiled shyly at him and then had to answer another pleasant question, but Roxas was, for the moment, not listening to the chat. He was running that last thought through his mind, checking it over and feeling it out – finding it real and solid and completely undeniable. I do. I love him. I love him. Wow.

With no way of expressing the feeling at this moment, Roxas did the only thing he could do – he reached out under the table and took Axel's hand and squeezed it, and when his boyfriend shot him a surprised sidelong look, he just smiled and went on holding Axel's hand.

He didn't get a chance to tell him that night, because after dinner it was late, and they couldn't spend the night together because Axel had work early. And Roxas didn't want to just say it and then say goodbye. So he bit his tongue and kissed Axel very hard when they parted ways, and forced himself to wait until their next date, when he knew they'd have time.

Choosing his moment carefully, he waited until they were alone, cozy in Axel's apartment, cuddling on the couch. Then – "You know what?"

"Hmmm?"

"I fell in love with you last weekend."

Axel pulled back instantly to stare in shock, but Roxas just smiled and nodded. "I did. I love you, Axel. I really love you. Is that…okay?"

It was very okay. Axel hugged him and kissed him and cried, which surprised Roxas a little, and Axel made him swear never to tell anyone he'd cried, and Roxas swore, "Oh fine, I promise. Because I love you." And that just made Axel cry more.

"You big freaking baby."

They laughed, and they made love right there on the couch, comfort and space be damned. Roxas kissed the tears away, and Axel kept trying and to find words to express how he felt about Roxas – and he kept floundering in the middle of the sentence and kissing and touching Roxas more instead.

And in the end, they lay there together, mooning over each other like two idiots, and Axel asked, "We're totally, for-real, in-love lovers now, right?"

Roxas snorted and poked him in the ribs. "Have a little self-confidence, dork. Hard to believe a guy as well-endowed as you can be so insecure."

Axel flushed and smirked at the same time, then admitted, "Yeah…I haven't been this insecure since I was twelve. I guess…it just seems too good to be true." His arms squeezed Roxas tighter. "I really love you, you know."

Hoping he wasn't blushing too much himself, Roxas answered, "Well, now the feeling is mutual, so get used to it. This relationship has gotten off to a train-wreck of a start; the sooner we get our shit figured out, the better."

"I dunno," Axel sighed into his hair, "maybe it wasn't easy, but I feel all right about it. I think we're off to a pretty good start, actually."

Roxas looked up, leaned in, and kissed his lover. "All right," he conceded with a grin, "if you say so."

And that settled it.

~o~

The Stopping-Point

~o~

Note to readers! Hey guys! If you read this because you're into Axel and Roxas and that's pretty much it, well...thanks! I hope you liked it! :D But if you also wonder if this Kurosora1984 lady has anything else to entertain you, and if you are even a little interested in other guys getting their sexy romance on, check out my current original story on FP! Links in my profile! Thank you, dears! :D