A/N: I am SO SORRY I haven't posted anything in so long. I decided to take a trip down the stairs and wound up busting my elbow (only bruised! yay!) so it put a kink on writing and... well... Anyway, I promise to get around to some updates on my other stories, but in the meantime, here's the first chapter of a new one. This is dedicated to my bestest buddy - crazyhorsechick - as a gift for getting all A's on her finals.

Today, Roxas decided, was not his day. He had decided that driving home for the holidays would be cheaper than flying but now Old Faithful had gone and broken down on him. Being a broke-ass college student, the blond did NOT have the funds necessary to call a tow truck, so he heaved a sigh and hauled himself out of the warm car. Looked like he'd be pushing it.

Today, Axel thought, was not his day. The approaching holiday was bringing all sorts of out-of-towners to his sleepy little town - a lot of them spoiled little rich boys who never worked a day in their lives. Axel didn't care if they were staying or passing through. All he wanted was for them to get the hell out of his garage. The self-importance and demands for instant gratification (what do you mean it's going to take a few hours?!) were beginning to smother.

He was in the middle of ringing up a bill for an oil change - and trying very hard not to wring the neck of the twat in front of him when his day took a decided turn. The bell above the door rang and Axel's eyes fixed on a flushed blond with unruly hair who was breathing heavily. Axel turned his attention back to the customer in front of him who was arguing about the bill. He'd deal with one prep at a time.

"Yes, the bill is correct," he interrupted. "Just because I talk slowly doesn't mean I'm stupid." Preppy scowled at him but swiped his card and signed the receipt before stomping out of the store. The red-head rolled his eyes before turning to the blond. "What's the make, model, year and issue?" he asked, grabbing a new client sheet.

"It's a Toyota, 1994. I don't know anything else…" he trailed off and Axel raised his head to peer at his new client. The kid was definitely from a nearby college but not half as preppy as the spoiled brats Axel had been dealing with.

Axel has a number of snide, derogatory things he could say right now. He settles on, "You look like you ran a marathon."

"I pushed my car. It broke down and I can't afford to spend money on a tow."

"Well, we're kind of booked up because of the holiday traffic. Earliest I'd be able to get to it is tomorrow." Axel watched as the blond heaved a sigh.

"Is there a hotel where I can get a room?"

"Toyota yours?" Both men turned as Axel's boss came to the front.

"This is Cid, the owner. Cid, this is Toyota 1994." Axel introduced lazily.

"Roxas," the blond introduced, shaking the owner's hand.

Probably your transmission. If that's all it is, Axel'll have you on the road by tomorrow." Roxas sent Cid a doubtful look. "Oh, don't let his smart mouth fool you. This kid is the best there is." Axel snorted as he headed to the garage.

"You only say that because otherwise you'd actually have to work."

"Hey!" Cid objected, swatting at the red-head as he passed him. Axel is ninety percent sure that the blond's cough is a polite way to cover a laugh. "Hey, you better not be going back to the shop! It's your lunch!"

"I'm not hungry," Axel stated, pulling open the door.

"Then take our customer to the hotel and show him around so he knows where the hell he's going." Cid ordered, dragging Axel away from the shop door and pushing him toward Roxas. "I better not see you in here until tomorrow!" Cid called as he disappeared.

"I've got orders to fill!" Axel shouted.

"I'm on it!" Cid yelled back. Axel sighed in frustration, running a hand through his unruly hair.

Roxas had been keeping an eye on the red-head since he had stepped into Cid's Garage. He had seen how Axel had eyed him before dismissing him, he had heard the red-head's snide comments to the preppy college kid - he had actually wanted to shake Axel's hand; Roxas couldn't stand kids like that - and had felt Axel's stand-offish attitude directed toward him. It had never occurred to the blond that HE would be mistaken for a college prep. But the red-head's animosity had wanted as he realized he was mistaken about the blond and Roxas was interested in figuring Axel out. His musing was interrupted as he felt soft cloth connect with his face.

"What's this?" he asked, blinking down out the cloth.

"Change of clothes. Bad for business if you die of hypothermia. Bathroom's through there," Axel stated as he pointed down the hallway.

"I'm fine, thanks though." Roxas held the clothes back out to the red-head but Axel shoved the clothes back into the smaller man's arms before turning him around and pushing him down the hall.

"You're covered in snow, it's freezing outside and just listening to your teeth chatter is making mine hurt. Now, you can change by yourself or I can help you but either way you're getting out of those sopping wet clothes." Axel stated as he blocked Roxas' way out of the bathroom. Roxas could feel his face flush and he shut the bathroom door quickly before the taller man could see it. The changing of clothes was a bit more difficult as his hands were beginning to shake but he finally managed to get out of his cold clothing. Getting into the dry clothes was easier but Roxas noted with horror that his fingers were too numb to do up the pants.

"Um…Axel?" he called, opening the door slightly. "I can't…" he trailed off as he looked down at the pants, struggling to maintain his dignity. Axel slipped into the bathroom and quickly buttoned and zipped the jeans before picking up the sodden clothes. Roxas tells himself he's grateful Axel was a gentleman about it.

"I'm parked around back," Axel stated as they headed outside. He grabbed Roxas' suitcases from the unlocked Toyota and tossed them into the back of his car before turning it on and cranking the heat for the still shivering blond. "Here," he stated grabbing Roxas' bright red hands and placing them next to the vent. The smaller man hissed and made to jerk his hands away but Axel held them firmly against the hot air. "It's going to hurt like hell but it's this or frostbite." Roxas nodded as he grit his teeth and Axel released his hands and began to drive. "So the hotel is up here on the left, about a block and a half from the garage. All the stores you're going to need are within a block radius of the hotel." Axel informed him as he pulled into the hotel parking lot. The blond nodded but Axel wasn't sure if it was because he was actually listening or if it was because he wanted the red-head to shut up. Axel decided it really didn't matter and focused on hoisting Roxas' bags out of his car. He made quick work of getting the blond a room, dropped his bags inside the door, shoved a card into his hands ("Call me or Cid if you have any questions.") and turned on his heel and left. He felt a slight twinge of guilt at leaving the blond on his own - he could of at least invited him out for dinner - but he squashed it ruthlessly. It wasn't like he was going to see the kid after tomorrow, right?

Despite what Cid said about not returning to the garage until tomorrow, Axel needed to work on cars if he had any hope of getting to Roxas' tomorrow. So he shambled back in and flipped Cid off when the older man asked if Axel already had Roxas in love with him. As he began pulling spare parts off the shelf and worked through the long line of cars, Axel felt his heart sink when he realized that he would get to Roxas' car tomorrow. He tried not to think about it too much.

Across town, Roxas flopped onto his tiny bed in the tiny hotel room and hoped that his car wouldn't be fixed tomorrow, just so he had an excuse to hang around town a bit longer.