A/N: Hello, readers! How is everyone?

Several months (?) ago, I posted an intense ramble about the emotional risks of writing fan fiction that spoiled the ending of this would-be story. I regret vomiting the denouement to you all before it even had a chance to flower, but... I did what I did.

I was actually shocked at the positive feedback my heart-to-heart received. I expected to be lambasted or jeered, but you were all very kind and informative and I appreciate that.

Whoever Guest is who wrote the long review describing the Point of View of the reviewer, I understand what you're saying, because I was once a reader, too (and still am). However, I do believe that the writer is in a much more precarious and delicate position than the reviewer, because they are opening their heart to the reviewer for judgment and thus should be judged with grace.

I got my BFA in Acting, and it was a shark tank of judgment. I know that people who stab the hardest have the most to protect. It's easy to put things down to "they just don't have the right words to express themselves," but I've grown wise enough to tell the difference between someone offering constructive criticism versus someone trying to dig at an innocent stranger who can't fight back. And maybe it doesn't seem like it, but I really do make a point of taking actual constructive criticism to heart, and have changed my writing style to support the logistics of style some users have opened me up to.

That said, I'm posting a chapter I started months ago (before I even resolved to quit fan fiction) but never finished.

I also meant what I said about being in a tough life situation at the time of my last posting. Most fan fiction writers have the luxury of being employed and/ or being school age and living with their parents. Unfortunately, I just aged out of that and the Southern US job market is a bitch!

It's sad, because I love fan fiction and yaoi with all my heart. Right now I'm working on an Omegaverse story about Vanitas attempting to hide his gender (if any of you were fans of Compliant Savages, you'll really like this one!) but I'd like to put it on a website for 50c per chapter and have a chance to add illustrations (because I also draw!) If anyone is interested, I can also make illustrations for some of my other fan fics and send them with the actual chapters as really nice PDF digital book files.

If you think that's a good idea, send me a thumbs up and I can send you info through PM. I'm also making an ao3 account and will post the first and next few chapters from my Omegaverse story there.

Thanks again for all your kindness and support. Maybe when I get a bit of savings together and can relax, I'll come back to my favorite hobby full force. I really do miss it...

•∞•

Twenty Four: Loose Ends

•∞•

Tuesday came with the knowledge that the Twilight Town Lions would be playing their first game of the season that Saturday. The news terrified Roxas, who was still groping through the nightmare that had been Ventus' Labor Day beach date by Thursday. If luck was on his side, he'd be benched the entire game. He really didn't need to be on the field.

In truth he was wearing thin.

Every happy thought was shadowed by constant worry over Ventus. What was he doing right now, what was he thinking, and how did he feel? Was he in danger in any way? What could Roxas do to make him okay?

Could he make him okay?

Aqua's date replayed in his head at the strangest moments. Pushing open a bathroom stall door had him reliving Ventus pushing Aqua towards the dunes, lowering his head to his studies had him replaying Ventus lowering his head to the surf, sighing over a difficult question in french sat him right back on the boardwalk, groaning and sobbing over how out of control his life was. Every memory rolled in slow motion under a glassy filter, like beads in a salt water kaleidoscope. Only the cacophony of the varsity football team in third period, when the PreCal teacher was running later than usual, jolted him out of his nighmarish reverie.

"Okay, okay, poll time!" Demyx sang, snapping his fingers to an imaginary beat. "Fifteen minutes says we all bounce. All in favor of bouncing say 'faggot'!"

Roxas stifled a growl and lowered his forehead to the PreCal homework he was trying to finish before the teacher arrived. He didn't know what was worse: reliving bad memories or making new ones at Twilight High.

"The bounce rule is fake, guys," Xion scoffed, dodging a wad of paper shot by Gula, a fellow sophemore, from a few tables down.

"The bounce rule is totally real," Lea retorted from Xion's side. "Educator responsibility is a beautiful thing!"

"That only exists in college," Xion retorted. "In high school, the teacher gets disciplined and the students get unexcused absences."

Lea leaned back and addressed the congregation, aka their makeshift lecture hall with an aisle down the middle flanked by rows of four seater, wheeled tables, crying out, "gather round, plebes, Xion's giving another impromptu lecture about Departure City's education system!"

As if a subliminal call to action had been sounded, the entirety of the football teams present swiveled around in their wheely chairs and whooped. Roxas peeped over his shoulder from the front of class to watch, spying dully as Demyx and Merida flew around like discuses, laughing and taunting Xion as her blush deepened.

"I'm not trying to lecture anyone!" she balked. "I'm just trying to stop you guys from making fools of yourselves!"

"Joke's on you, Shi Shi," Demyx sang, cackling as he rammed into the back of Roxas' chair by accident before shooting off to Xion's side. "It's like Riku's always saying, if Departure's so much better, why didn't you fucking stay?"

Roxas' ears piqued. Xion was originally from Depature City? Terra was from there as well as Aqua's law school. How many people did Roxas know with a connection to that place? Why were they all here, all of a sudden? Without thinking, he swiveled around.

He was greeted by a profile view of Xion, crimson faced and teary eyed, shooting up and slamming her fists against her study table in anger.

"You know what?" she croaked. "Fuck you all! I wish I had stayed, that way I wouldn't have to deal with all of your inbred, ignoramus bullshit!" With that, she kicked her chair aside, gathered her things, and made for the door, failing to notice Roxas staring her down in shock as she passed or Lea jumping out of his seat.

"Xion!" the redhead cried, tripping as he tried making it into the center aisle. "Wait up, we were only-" but it was too late. She was long gone.

"-Joking," he finished in a mutter, slumping in the middle of the classroom in defeat.

For a moment the entire hall was quiet as the varsity teams peeped from one person to the next. Then, Demyx snorted.

"How many points should we give Princess Departure for all those five dollar words?" he winked in self satisfaction.

Whipping around, Lea shot Demyx with a look of rancor, making the blond choke and shrink in his seat.

"What?" Demyx balked through a frightened blush. "What's with the face? What did I do?"

"You acted like a fucking idiot, that's what," Lea snapped. "You know she's sensitive about that shit."

"Ugh, girls are sensitive, what's new?" Demyx drawled, a puppy dog twinkle glimmering in his eyes as he feigned nonchalance. When the girls booed and shot paper wads at him, he squealed in glee.

Lea, on the other hand, would not let it go. "No one is sensitive, Dem, you're just a fucking idiot!" he spat, silencing the room again. "You brought up a private conversation between a bunch of guys to one of their girlfriends! Who fucking does that?"

When Demyx responded with silence, Lea rolled his eyes and collected his stuff as well, slinging the pile into his backpack and hiking that over one lanky shoulder. "Now I have to go see if she's fucking alright! Gods, you're such a dumbass!"

Roxas stared in suppressed interest as Axel turned, stomped through the door, and slammed it behind him and dissappearing down the hall. Then, growing very interested in his PreCal homework, Roxas piqued one ear towards the conversations erupting behind him. As soon as he was sure everyone was turned away, he glanced towards Lea and Xion's empty seats in curiosity.

Funny. He hadn't noticed Lea and Xion sharing the same table till today. Sure, it was common for football kids to huddle up wherever they went, but seeing these two side by side without their significant others was otherworldly. The chairs, though empty, were still close for being table partners. Did the two consider each other... friends?

"Who else thinks Lea's gone to set fire to my jersey?" Demyx piped up, insighting laughter and spirited debate. There must have been an inside joke hidden somewhere in there, judging by the way the kids' eyes sparkled as they giggled, like mentioning their part in an unsolved crime.

"You'd swear they were going out the way they cover for each other," Merida suggested, making everyone gasp and whisper.

"No way, Larx would butcher Lea if he ever cheated on her."

"Kind of a double standard there, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Because she's always rubbing up on Isa!"

"OMG, you did not just say that!"

"But it's true!"

Roxas doodled on his homework so feverishly that the tip of his pencil broke. Scowling, he wiped it away just as a shadow fell over his pages. The next thing he knew, he was being tackled by an unseen force.

"How do you feel about all that, Roxy?" Demyx sang above, rocking Roxas back and forth against his will.

"Get off!" Roxas groaned amidst the cheers and hollers of the remaining class.

"Come on, aren't fags relationship experts? Tell us what you think of the action! It won't make us like you any less!"

"What action?" Roxas barked, trying not to look guilty of listening in. "I was trying to do my homework, not listening to your stupid gossip!"

"Oooh," the varsity teams chanted together, bursting into spirited laughter soon after.

"Watcha drawing?" Demyx continued, resting his chin on top of Roxas' head, throwing his arms around his shoulders, and leaning into his back.

Like when any attractive male touched him, Roxas sunk in embarrassment and babbled incoherently, objecting through a whimper when Demyx swept up his PreCal homework and stared it down. Funnily enough, it was the first time Roxas had a chance to see what he had actually drawn.

It was Twilight beach. The pier. Three people sat on it, two boys and a girl. One of the boys was much taller than the other. Was it he, Ventus, and Aqua?

"Dude, is this you, Lea, and Xion?" Demyx balked.

"N-no!" Roxas cried, swiping the paper out of Demyx' hands. "It's me, my brother, and... his girlfriend," he swallowed. Gods, how he wished it were that simple.

"Ventus has a girlfriend?" a junior named Yuna from girl's varsity cried two rows down. "That is so not fair!"

"What's this one?" Demyx asked as conversation filtered up behind them. When he remained rested against Roxas' back, it made Roxas recall what Sora had said about Demyx having 'at least one foot in the door.'

It made Roxas bite his lip. When he saw his other doodle, any thoughts left his mind.

It was a sad dog surrounded by cameras, a more tame, better drawn version of Ventus' journal doodle Roxas had caught long ago, when he had been sitting on the couch and had been cut by the sharp glint of metal that fell out from between the pages. Why had his mind wandered to that, he wondered?

"You're good at drawing," Demyx conceded.

Without thought, Roxas swiveled around and met his eye, drawing the two of them closer. It was a surprise to Demyx, who blinked back a blush as he stared down into Roxas' focused cerulean blues.

"Thanks," Roxas nodded.

Within seconds, the two were apart, Demyx sitting at Roxas' side with a bright smile. "Weird fucking picture, but it reminds me..." he started, inching close enough for one of his knees to touch Roxas', though that wasn't a major feat considering the length of Demyx' legs. "you are coming to the party on saturday night, right?"

"Party?" Roxas breathed.

Demyx nodded. "Sora sent out a mass text. You should have gotten it days ago."

"My phone..." Roxas started, conceding, "my phone broke a couple weeks ago."

"Shit, dude, why didn't you say so?" Demyx cried. "No wonder everyone's been complaining about how much of a prissy bitch you are, you never respond to anyone's messages!"

"I-I'll get a new phone, I swear," Roxas breathed. "I just... my family doesn't have that much money and..."

"Dude, don't worry about it," Demyx cut over him, swiping his hand to the side to indicate a clean slate. "Just remember this: first away game on saturday morning at eleven. Bus is leaving at 7 am. We get home tops by six. Party at 8 at my place. You need the address?"

"Uh, y-yeah, I guess," Roxas blushed, squeaking in surprise when Demyx grabbed him by the arm and scribbled his address across the soft of his wrist in sharpie.

"Just whatever you do, don't be late, and you have to come. It's a fucking tradition that cannot be broken, man. On pain of DEATH."

"What kind of party will it be?" Roxas asked in discomfort.

Demyx' eyes sparkled with glee. "Oh, you don't need to know the specifics! Just bring a date and an open mind. Make sure to unplug the stick from your ass, too. You know, loosen up a bit. Try to have fun."

"Yeah," Roxas muttered, attempting not to roll his eyes. He had an idea of what the party was going to be like already.

"But seriously- bring a date," Demyx warned. "Boy or girl, doesn't matter. You get penalized if you don't."

"Penalized?" Roxas started, but before he could ask a question fully, the teacher burst into the room amidst a round of apologies and started taking attendance. Xion and Lea had still not returned, and Roxas didn't see them coming back any time soon. Before he could wonder where they went, the teacher started collecting homework.

"Hah!" She smiled as she passed Roxas. "We've got an artist in our midst!"

Roxas blushed and handed in his papers upside down, without aplomb.

When the teacher went back to the board, Roxas stared at the empty table top in wonder. He had to find a date to a high school party by Saturday? That didn't exactly leave him much time. Who on earth would he ask? Who on earth would even want to go?

"Well, I'll be," the PreCal teacher sighed in feigned surprise. "None of you did your homework properly. I feel like I'm trying to read pig latin up here."

"That's what we feel like when we try to do the homework, ma'am!" Demyx called, making the class laugh again. He was still sitting at Roxas' side. Did he want to copy his notes, or something?

Roxas tried his best to cancel Demyx' droning out. He had to think.

Who would go to the party with him? Hayner or Pence? No, he didn't want to drag them into suspected fagdom, too. Moana, perhaps, the girl from hula zumba? No, too far away. Olette? Hayner would never forgive him.

Namine?

Roxas tapped his chin in thought.

There was no harm in trying. Maybe he could ask her in art class or at lunch. After all, the worst she could say was no.

•∞•

Saturday morning came fast. Somehow Roxas managed to ask Namine to the football party on Friday morning, and by the grace of the gods she said yes. Her parents were going to take them there, but it would be Cid or Ventus' job to take them home. It was a little embarrassing that Roxas couldn't even pick up his date, but it was just the way the car situation had worked out. For some reason Ventus needed the truck "really bad" that night.

Half of Roxas suspected Ventus was going on a date with someone, but the other half wondered who he could go on a date with. He hadn't heard a peep from Aqua in a week, and Ventus hadn't tried reaching out to her as far as Roxas knew. Whenever Roxas tried mentioning her, the subject would quickly change to something more inocuous. If that was impossible, Ventus found something more important to do in another room.

A/N: Thanks for reading, everyone. If it helps, most of my unfinished stories are jumping off points for even better stories, so if you liked this, you'll like the stuff I do in the future. Who knows, I may come back to this someday, but it won't be until you're all old and grey. Find me on ao3.