Author's Note: Here is a story dedicated fully and with lots of love to Nijuuni on deviantART, who is a fantastically talented artist and writer, because she deserves it and so much more from me. I really, really adore you and appreciate all you've done for me! I hope you know how much.

This is something I've been working on since the end of May/finished in June. It started out as a drabble that quickly got eaten up by plot bunnies and pooped out as this long-ass thing. I wanted to wait to post this until it was all done, but I got a block for part two so I thought if I posted this and got some positive feedback, it might help the second half along. I hope those who read enjoy, though the rest will unfortunately not be posted for month - until Nijuuni gets back from vacation and gives it the stamp of approval.

For those of you not aware of the crossover pairing of ARR (AxelRoxasReno), you might be thinking "WHAT". I know where you're coming from. I used to be the same way. But...RENO/AXEL IS SEXYYYYYYYYYYYYY.

Many thanks to my beta and my Axel, uruwashii uso for providing inspiration, reading this, fixing the mistakes and reassuring me about it!

Warning: Um, oh man. A stupid job, crossdressing, gropage, lots of perverted gayness, erections and curse words. Those should be standard warnings from me by now.

Standard disclaimers too.

~Special Delivery~

To say that Axel was going through a stressful time in his life was an understatement. His desk was sort of a symbol of that.

Papers were askew and crumpled, surrounding the man and barely allowing an inch of his desk to show. Photographs of friends were pushed together due to lack of room, overlapping each other – except for one that Axel always kept up front. Pens and pencils were shoved together in a cup, practically spilling out of it. Cups were stacked, beer bottles empty. The only light was that of Axel's laptop screen, illuminating his tired face, casting shadows about the room. What was on the screen hadn't changed for about ten minutes.

Axel was contemplating cleaning and organizing everything when there was a sudden sound from across the room. He flicked on his desk lamp and spun around in his chair to see that his hamster had flipped over his food dish, as he often did when he was frustrated…and hungry.

"I know, Mickey, I know," Axel sighed and gave him an apologetic smile. "I'm hungry too. I'll get more food tomorrow. And hopefully one day I'll be so rich you'll be rolling in Ansem's Assorted Hamster Food."

To his dismay, the fuzzy rodent only continued to glare at him.

Just as Axel got up to give his poor pet what was left in the package of pet food, his cell phone started buzzing for the third time that night. Letting out a frustrated sigh, Axel reluctantly picked it up off his desk. He glanced at the caller ID and rolled his eyes, choosing to answer this time.

"He-"

"SEVEN DAAAAAAAAAAYSSSSSS" the voice on the other end hissed.

"Hi Demyx."

"Awww man, how'd you know it was me?" the other man whined and Axel could just picture the pout on his face.

"Intuition," he replied simply. "Plus, I haven't seen 'The Ring' in years so Samara would be a little late to kill me wouldn't she? And you can't pull off her creepy voice anyways."

There was a pause. "Shuddup. What are you doing?"

"Writing," Axel lied, rubbing his eyes in exhaustion.

"Ahhh, so that's why you were ignoring my calls."

"Yuuuup, and I'd like to ignore this one too, if you don't mind."

"Noooo, first you have to guess what I'm dooooooing," Demyx breathed into the phone playfully and Axel could hear background noise and pulsing music.

"Getting drunk?" the redhead guessed immediately.

"Oh my god!" Demyx exclaimed, sounding taken off guard. "Dude you are so not at home writing are you? You're totally somewhere in the club…" his words got quieter and he trailed off, as if he was distracted by something. Most likely scanning the area of whatever club he was in for Axel, the man figured. "How'd you know these things? You're totally spying on me."

"Aw, Dem, nope, as much as I love to stalk you, I'm at home." Axel stated, glancing at the time. Eleven p.m. Why was he so tired already?

"Alright. Well, you were right. I'm getting there," the man said, not sounding totally convinced that Axel wasn't in his general vicinity. "But yeah, that's why I called, you should come out with me and-"

"I can't," Axel said right away, expecting it and yawning. "I don't have the money to go out and blow it all right now, I need to save it for like… food and bills, you know?"

"… You can eat free peanuts at the bar. That's food."

"Oh yes, covered in remnants of urine from everyone sticking their hands in the dish. Yum."

Demyx sighed, sending static between the cell phones. "Seriously man, just come out tonight. Give yourself a break. Everyone misses you."

"You know I'd like to, but I really can't," Axel insisted, beginning to pace around his room.

"What'll it take to convince you?"

"Gee, how should I phrase this… nothing can?"

"What if I pay for your drinks?"

"Sorry, I try to avoid driving home drunk."

"What if I pay for a cab to pick you up and bring you home?"

"Man, then I'd feel like I owed you."

"What if I invited Roxas?"

"Then…" Axel's prepared response died in his throat and he paused, feeling his adrenaline rush at the name. "No."

"Ahaaa!" Demyx cried triumphantly. "I knew that would get you! I'm so inviting Roxas!"

"No you are not," Axel growled and glanced at the center picture on his desk. It was his favorite one of Roxas and himself, the short blond was on Axel's shoulders, hands tangled in the man's hair. Axel wished that he could feel the boy's fingers running through his hair right now; it would have no doubt relaxed him.

"It'll get you to come! When's the last time you saw him anyway?" Demyx asked pleasantly, not aware of the expression on Axel's face at all.

"Uh… not since my graduation party…"Axel sighed.

"What?" Demyx cried in disbelief. "No way! We graduated five months ago man!"

"Ugh, don't remind me," Axel groaned, sinking back down into his desk chair. "I'm going to have to start paying off my college loans in a month…"

Demyx chose to ignore this and continued to pester Axel with questions. "Why haven't you seen him? Are you still talking to him? What happened?"

Axel bit his lip and scratched the back of his head, swiveling himself back and forth in his chair nervously. "You know what happened. And yeah, we've talked a little. Online and stuff."

"What the hell, you sissy!" Demyx scolded. "Hiding behind the computer screen. I can't believe you. You two are best friends!"

"Yeah, I know," the redhead said, getting frustrated. It was a touchy subject and he really didn't want to talk about it. "We're just having a bit of a falling out, I guess."

"I can't believe this!" Demyx practically squeaked. "Alright, so yeah, you two got drunk and made out on the couch but–"

Axel cleared his throat. "Uh… we did a little more than make out on the couch, Dem…"

"Yeah and it was hot. You two put on a show for everyone." The glee in the man's voice made Axel groan in embarrassment, cradling his head in his hand. "But seriously, I thought you too were finally going to get together! And here the opposite happens; you're not even friends anymore?"

"We are friends!" Axel said defensively. "That's why I haven't done anything about it… I don't want to fuck up what we already have."

"Pssssssh. You're already fucking it up then. You think it'll solve things by just chickening out and not talking to him?"

"Well, clearly it messed us up already, since Roxas isn't really putting in any effort either…" the redhead admitted sadly. "It was just a mistake, Dem. We'll forget about it soon and it'll be normal, but right now we're avoiding each other. He's busy with school anyway."

"Maybe he's just as scared as you! You two are meant for each other!"

"Says you," Axel snorted, but couldn't help but glance at the picture of the two of them again. "Roxas isn't into guys–"

"Dude, he's the one who jumped on you and shoved his tongue into your mouth-"

"He was drunk, Dem, and so was I."

"You could be drunk right now if you would stop being so lame and just come out here and I'll invite Roxas and then you can take that couch-heavy-petting session to the next level, if you know what I mean."

"Demyx, I'm hanging up."

"No, no, no, wait! Okay, I'll be serious! Really, two best buddies don't just make out at a party for the hell of it – that's what girls do," the redhead's friend explained quickly. "There's got to be something behind it, it's got to be mutual. Plus you two weren't even that drunk, since you both remember it. It's always been so obvious that you two were totally gay for each other."

Axel rubbed his forehead, not sure of what to say. "… Look. I'd like to believe that," he confessed. "I really would. I do… like Roxas. I like him so much… Always have…"

"He's always been your faaaaaaaavoriiiiite!" Demyx sung into the phone.

"Yeah," the redhead sighed. "But… I just don't want to talk about this right now, okay? I don't need more shit to deal with."

"…Alright," Demyx gave in, but he sounded disappointed. "So living on a degree in creative writing isn't going so well, huh?"

Mickey started flipping his food dish over and over again so Axel shot up from his seat and strode over to his neglected hamster. "Well yeah, I don't have a job on campus anymore and it's just hard to get known, you know? I'm trying to find a side job."

"Man, that sucks," Demyx sympathized. "Ohhh, you know what? They're hiring at my work!"

"Really?" Axel asked with moderate interest, raising his eyebrows. He tucked his phone between his ear and shoulder as he opened Mickey's cage, still trying to shake off the feeling of being reminded of Roxas. "Uh, where do you – Ah!"The man yelped and leapt back when his angry little pet tried to bite him. "Wh-where do you work again?"

"Post Office!" Demyx said proudly. "They're hiring mailmen; I could so get you a job by recommending you."

"Oh, right…" Axel said as he cautiously reached into the cage and grabbed the food bowl. "Sounds like loads of fun. Does it pay well?"

"Yup, you start out at 11.50 an hour and work your way up from there."

"Hmm…" The redhead furrowed his brow and contemplated the option. He really did need money. Getting a job on the side of writing was pretty much inevitable at this point and that was a good amount of pay. "I guess that would work. A job's a job right?"

"Sure, but you've got to be brave! I could never do it. I don't want dogs chasing me almost everyday."

"You make it sound so appealing…" Axel laughed as he poured food into Mickey's bowl. "But I think I can handle it."

"Good!" Demyx said enthusiastically. "You just have to promise me one thing."

"Mm?" Axel switched his phone to his other shoulder so he could give Mickey his food dish back. "What?"

"If I get you the job, we're gonna have another party, and I'm gonna invite Roxas," he blabbered. "When you see him you have to give him the most romantic kiss ever in front of everyone and confess your love, otherwise I'll tell the office that you're a creepy pedo who just wants to molest children in the neighborhoods."

"Goodbye, Demyx."

"Wait, I'm kid-"

Axel flipped his phone shut and shook his head in amusement. So, a job at the post office. How glamorous – but this wasn't the time to be picky. There's no possible way it could be bad, he figured, since it'd be a pretty independent job. Whatever. Axel decided that he'd go for it. Unfortunately, as he was thinking he didn't realize that his hand was still in the cage, so Mickey took the moment to strike, biting down hard on his index finger.

"Ow!" Axel cried, jumping back and landing on his ass on his bed. Mickey hopped up with his front feet on the opening of the cage to look at him, nose twitching triumphantly. The redhead stood up and brushed himself off, sticking his bleeding finger into his mouth to suck on it. Grumbling, he walked over and snapped the hamster's cage shut, only for the mischievous rodent to flip over his food bowl again, spilling its contents all over.

"Oh my god," Axel groaned, holding his arms out to the side in defeat. "What do you want from me? I'm getting a job, okay?"

Luckily only a couple weeks later, Axel found out that he was hired. On his first day, he woke up early. He wanted to start the day fresh; it wouldn't look good to be late on his first official day after training. Not only that, but making a stop by his favorite coffee shop seemed like a pretty awesome idea. Nothing started out the day right like a double latte from 7th Heaven, especially when he would soon have the money to start coming there regularly again.

A pleasant jingle of bells alerted the woman behind the counter of his presence when Axel opened the door, and he instantly smiled at her. Perfect, his favorite lady was working today.

"Good morning, Tifa," he greeted smoothly, striding up to the counter.

"Morning, Axel," she returned with her own smile. She tossed the towel that she was cleaning with away in order to give him her full attention. "The usual?" she asked, leaning forward onto the counter so that her dark brown hair spilled over her shoulders.

"Of course." He made sure to let her notice his eyes roam her body, noticing her skirt was a bit tighter today and her shirt was perhaps a size too small, hugging her features and revealing a bit of her midriff. She turned to go prepare his drink and his expression changed to more of a patronizing smirk behind her back. He had told her that he would be coming in that day… What a bold move for such an apparently shy girl; though Axel still couldn't figure out why she always played it so coy when she had a body like that.

Keeping his eyes glued on her, he noticed her pull the lever and make his usual double latte into a triple. Axel quickly averted his gaze when she moved over to the whipped cream, pretending that he didn't see. It seemed that Tifa was laying out the subtle flirting a little thick today.

"Here you are," she said once she was done, sliding the latte to him. Axel made sure to brush his fingers with hers as he took it. "So," she glanced down at his hand, lips curving into a flirtatious smile. "First day on a new job huh?"

"Yeah," Axel nodded. "So I can't stay long unfortunately. It'll probably be really boring too, trust me, I'd rather stay here." He took a sip from his latte and licked his lips. "Damn, did you make me a triple?"

The brunette shook her head modestly. "I could have given you a job here, you know."

Grinning, Axel reached into his back pocket for his wallet. "Oh you wouldn't want to do that, Tifa. I'd be too busy staring at you the whole time to work."

Tifa waved a hand as a gesture for him to put away his wallet, playfully ignoring his compliment. "Don't worry about the drink today, it's on me."

Axel flashed her his most genuine grin, lifted her manicured hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "Really, when are you going to leave Cloud and marry me?"

As she pulled her hand away, the woman smiled and looked almost as if she was about to laugh. "Get out of here before you're late. And don't let this job get in the way of your writing."

Replacing his wallet, Axel stepped away from the counter. "Oh I won't, if that's what you want. You're going to be the star of my next novel after all."

The redhead left her with a wink and headed out. A free triple latte by simply flirting a little heavier than normal with the barista. Not a bad way to start the day at all.

All Axel had to do was show up at the nearby post office and clock in since he had already traveled his set route during training. He hopped into the mail car and made his way to the parking lot of apartment buildings along his route. Since he was new he didn't get the liberty of a neighborhood route with mail boxes, so he was stuck delivering on foot.

Axel began dropping off people's bundles of mail, enjoying the crisp fall weather and trying not to think of how much this would suck in the winter. The Twilight apartment complex was his first stop. For the apartments he actually had to go inside the building and to drop off mail at each door, even deliver small packages. It was a heavy load on his shoulder, but Axel was happy that it would at least be getting smaller. Going along, most everyone's post was boring, bills and junk mail. After apartment eleven he pulled out the mail for the next place, number thirteen and glanced through – and he finally saw something interesting.

Bill, bill, bill, gay porn magazine, bill, gay porn magazine, gay porn magazine, bill for ordering porn on TV.

…Well. Axel expected to deliver some Playboy – but shiny magazines slapped with erotic images of men on men, especially more than one? Not so much. He paused outside of the door, a bit of a blush already forming on his cheeks just from looking at the cover of each one. Curiously, he opened one and was greeted with a page full of unique ways to make use of sex toys and his mouth dropped open.

"Nice," he muttered under his breath in approval, setting his bag of mail down so he could view it more freely. After flipping through a few more pages he grew increasingly flustered and impressed with what he saw… What kind of people lived here, anyway?

It seemed that he was about to find out, because before Axel could get a hold of himself, the door to the apartment opened.

"Hey there, can I help you?"

Axel jumped, quickly glancing up and taking in the sight of a man just about his height leaning against the door frame. A very attractive man. What wasn't tied back of his red hair fell into his face, but Axel could still make out the curved tattoos under his eyes…and the sharp smirk on his features.

"Uh," Axel said. He may have been good with the ladies…but not with men like this.

The other redhead's grin widened and he glanced down at what was in Axel's hands. "Are you lookin' at my mail?" he asked a bit incredulously, tone mostly amused.

"Uh, no!" Axel said automatically, closing the magazine and realizing he must have looked like a total pervert. He thrust his hand forward to offer the mail to the man, who he assumed was named 'Reno' considering that was the name on each bill and magazine. "I'm delivering it… I'm your mailman."

"You're my mailman? What happened to the old ugly one?"

"Um… I dunno…" Axel muttered, distracted when Reno took a step towards him, blue eyes never leaving green as he reached forward and took the pile from the postman, subtly brushing their hands together. Axel felt his heart rate pick up its pace and he swallowed hard at the jolt it gave him. It was totally different from when he touched Tifa's hand. Shit. Forget being embarrassed about being caught ogling at this guy's mail, the fact that the man was already having such an effect on him was shameful.

The other redhead finally broke eye contact to flip through what was given to him, tossing the regular bills behind him into the apartment with a snort. "Finally this shit came, yo," he mumbled as he stopped at the magazines, Axel assuming he was talking to no one in particular.

"Okay…" Axel said with a nervous smile and slowly began to back away. "Well, I have more things to deliver, so… have a good day."

Reno's head snapped up and he gave Axel a quick once-over. "Wait a second," he said smoothly, giving a crooked grin. "Is this what you were lookin' at?" Without hesitation he held up one of the magazines sideways, letting the centerfold unravel to expose two naked men tangled in some kind of position that Axel didn't even think was possible. And Axel felt his face go hot.

"I-I wasn't looking through your mail," he stammered, backing himself into the wall opposite of the door to number thirteen, avoiding looking at the picture. Reno only followed him.

"…Do you want to?" he asked with a snicker, trying to make eye contact again as he closed the distance between them. "You seem interested… and I've got time, yo."

What the hell? This guy didn't even know his name and he was… hitting on Axel? He – he wanted to look at porn with him? The redhead couldn't press himself against the wall any further, realized he was trapped and tried to calm his rapidly beating heart. His voice was a little weak when he spoke, but he tried to remain unfazed. "…I'd love to," he said sarcastically, giving a smirk of his own. "But I have a job to do."

"That's too bad," Reno said and placed his hands on the wall on either side of Axel's head, leaning close. "That means I'll have to look at them all alone, and that's just no fun."

"Well – I'm sorry?" Axel offered, practically bending himself over backward since the other redhead was invading his personal bubble. Reno didn't respond at first, instead lifted a hand and curled it around the back of Axel's head, pulling him back so they were level again. The mailman gasped, half in pain and half in surprise.

"You should be sorry." Reno trailed his hand down Axel's upper body, fingers pressing so firm it almost felt like there was no barrier of clothing between them at all. Axel could feel the other's breath fanning against his lips, warm and inviting. "You do know what you did is illegal, right?"

Axel gulped and thought, raping someone is also illegal…

Reno watched his Adam's apple bob up and down with a smirk and didn't wait for more of a response. "Looking through someone's mail is an… invasion of privacy," he breathed, suddenly palming Axel's half-hard cock through his pants. The helpless redhead's breath hitched and he unconsciously grabbed the front of Reno's shirt, glancing down in between their bodies. The other man grinned and squeezed firmly, eliciting a soft moan. "It's pretty rude, don't you think?"

"Y-yeah…" Axel barely managed to choke out, biting his lip.

As quickly as it had happened, Reno let go and stepped back, leaving Axel to stumble forward. "Glad you agree, yo," he said with a wicked grin, heading back into his apartment. "Good we got that cleared up on your first day. What's your name anyway?"

Heart still pounding and cock still straining against his pants, Axel could only stare at him incredulously. Only after Reno raised an eyebrow did he answer weakly, "…Axel."

"Axel?" The man seemed a little surprised at the name, but before Axel could really catch onto it the darker haired redhead cleared his throat and continued. "Weird name, but your looks make up for it," he drawled, lazily leaning back on the doorframe, magazine rolled up in one hand. "I'm Reno. Welcome to the neighborhood, yo." After one last, prolonged once-over, Reno turned and closed the door. Axel was left to stand there, dumbstruck, until he found his way back to his mail car to take care of the problem in his pants that the man had caused.

Axel figured that the incident was just a one time thing; that Reno was just getting back at him for being a pervert. Unfortunately for the redhead, he discovered that nothing was really a "one time thing" for the other – and since he delivered the mail at the same time every day save for Sundays, the sometimes not-so-subtle torture continued for the rest of the week. It wasn't just dogs that Axel had to worry about chasing after him.

As the days progressed, the other redhead found more and more ways to tease him. Axel learned to try to get by apartment thirteen as fast as possible. He would dash by, drop the mail off, and continue on his way in record time in order to avoid Reno. The only problem was, most of the time the guy seemed to be waiting for him. Just as Axel would be retreating down the hallway, Reno would fling open his door and call out to him. One day, just as Axel was slipping their mail through his door, he felt a hand firmly grope his rear-end. He abruptly stood and spun around to see Reno, grinning like some kind of predatory animal, armed with the excuse that it was the quickest method of getting his ass out of the way. The day when Reno came out in nothing but a towel, dripping wet from just getting out of the shower, was particularly bad.

It made one wonder if Reno was just plain bored. Maybe he was getting back at Axel still for looking at his porno mag, but after a week it hardly seemed like a grudge anymore. Axel just didn't know if the teasing was simply for amusement or if Reno actually was interested in him. Either way, Axel didn't want to get fired, so there was nothing he could do.

So the day when Axel had to deliver a package to his door, therefore having to face Reno willingly, he was particularly distraught.

He stood outside of the apartment door in dread, futilely stalling for time by just staring at it. Finally, after taking a deep breath, Axel accepted that he had to just get things done and over with, and he knocked.

After a few moments the door opened, Axel tense and gaze focused straight ahead to where he expected to see Reno's head appear – that way he could just shove the package at him, tell him to sign for it and bolt without giving the other a chance to molest him. But the door opened all the way and Axel didn't see Reno. He saw no one. Just empty space. No one tried to touch him, and there was no suggestive pick-up line. Before Axel even had a chance to figure out what was going on, a voice spoke, sounding as confused as he was.

"…Axel? What are you doing here?"

The redhead's breath caught in his throat at the familiar voice and he immediately looked down to see familiar blond hair, familiar blue eyes, a face he hadn't seen for a while but could never forget. Axel staggered back a bit.

"Roxas?"

…Not what he expected at all.

The two gaped at each other, dumbfounded, before the short blond broke the silence. "Uh…hi."

"Hey," Axel said, unable to keep the questioning tone out of his voice. He gave the boy a once-over and glanced frantically at the number of the apartment outside of the door just to make sure that this was actually happening. There was no denying that this wide-eyed boy was indeed the Roxas he knew, and that the number was number thirteen.

What was Roxas doing in Reno's apartment – the apartment of the guy who'd been sexually harassing him for the past week?

The air was awkward between them and Axel became aware that his hands were shaking slightly. He remembered the last time he had seen Roxas. The morning after his graduation he had woken up shirtless and hung-over, with the blond laying on top of him. They had quickly gotten off of each other and Roxas had muttered some excuse about how he had to be somewhere, and that was that. The blond seemed to remember this too, judging by the way he quickly averted his gaze and shifted uncomfortably.

"Wow, I… Long time no see."

"Y-yeah," Axel said, a nervous but genuine smile gracing his features. "How are you? Jeez, sorry I haven't been able to keep in touch, I've been busy."

"Busy being a mailman huh?" Roxas asked almost judgmentally, looking at the package in his hands and bag on his shoulder.

"Uh, well kind of," Axel said, definitely feeling the sting of Roxas' bitterness. "I had to get a job in order to pay off the college loans until I start to get more well-known with my writing. Funny that we randomly meet up like this again, huh?" He swallowed thickly, not being able to help but blurt out the question that was tormenting him in the back of his mind, even though he was afraid of the answer. "Uh, what are you doing here?"

Roxas looked back up at him again, nervous and almost guilty seeming. The look alone pretty much answered Axel's question for him and he felt like he was going to be sick.

"I live here," he said quietly.

"…Oh?" Axel desperately tried to keep his voice steady, impartial, but he was almost positive the disappointment and hurt showed on his face. "With… Reno?"

"Yeah… You've met him?" Roxas asked hesitantly.

Resisting to say 'yeah, and his hand has met various places on my body', Axel instead played it innocent. "I have…" He nodded slowly, pursing his lips to prevent himself from blurting anything out. "…So when did that happen?"

"It was kind of last minute, really," Roxas told him, running a hand through his hair. "I needed a place to stay near campus and so I ended up just moving in with him…"

A spark of hope came upon Axel. "Oh so you're roommates?"

The boy gave a nervous laugh. "No… we're dating."

"…Oh."

Even though he suspected it, the news still hit him hard. Axel was flooded with so many emotions at once, he didn't know what to think. Apparently Roxas had now accepted that he liked men and was open to dating them. Axel did the math quickly in his head, school had been in session again for about a month and a half, so Roxas had met this guy, dated him, and moved in with him in about four months? It was ridiculous. Axel was angry at himself for losing his chance, he was jealous of Reno; disgusted at the other for feeling him up when he was dating someone that deserved better. He was bitter at Roxas for not taking any initiative either and stunned by the irony of it all. Great, the man that Axel wanted to get into bed was already in bed with the boy he thought that he was in love with.

But Axel forced a smile anyway. "Wow, that's great for you, Rox… Why didn't you tell me?"

A look of guilt crossed Roxas' face again and he let out an exasperated sigh. "Because… you… look, I'm sorry–"

Axel cut him off before he could make the situation even more awkward. "It's okay. Never mind. I'm happy for you," he lied in the friendliest of manners, dropping his mailbag because the added weight to his shoulders was too much. "It's my own fault for not keeping up with you – for not knowing I mean. We, uh, we should fix that."

"Yeah," Roxas snorted and punched his arm. Axel actually grinned, almost in thanks, since the action was just like old times. "Figures you'd forget all about me as soon as you graduate."

"Ow," Axel laughed, rubbing the spot on his arm. "You have my apologies. So we should hang out soon?"

"Yeah," the boy agreed, smiling comfortably as well. "Whenever I'm not in school and you're not working I guess." Glancing down at the package in Axel's hands, he asked, "Is that for us?"

Axel grimaced at the 'us' and said, "It's for Reno. Is he here?" Please say no…

Eyes still on the box in Axel's hands, Roxas frowned. "No, for once I'm home on a Saturday and he's not… Can I take it?"

The redhead handed over the package with relief, hoping for a chance to touch Roxas but didn't get one. So instead he admired the puzzled look on the boy's face.

"I wonder what this could be…" Roxas murmured, tilting the box in his hands. "Reno didn't tell me that he was ordering anything…"

The memory of Reno's porn magazines returned to Axel's mind and he wondered if the guy had told Roxas that he was ordering those. Then Axel realized that Roxas was dating a horny pervert, and he felt even more upset, if possible. Still, he was curious as to what the box could be. It might be something that would upset Roxas and thus make him realize he should be with the man right in front of him. "You should open it," he suggested indifferently.

Roxas raised a mischievous eyebrow. "You think so?"

"Yeah, sure, why not?" Axel gave his own smirk, happy to hide his negative feelings for the moment.

After a pause, the boy asked him, "Do you have a break anytime soon? You should come in."

"I do, though I'm not supposed to take it for a few more hours…" Axel admitted. There was no way he was going to walk away from Roxas so soon, though. "But that's alright, I can take my fifteen minutes now."

"You sure?" Roxas questioned politely, but it was obvious that he didn't want Axel to go because he opened the door a little wider.

"I'm sure," the redhead said firmly and entered the apartment when Roxas stepped aside. The blond headed over into the little kitchen area and deposited the box onto the table, then went to grab some scissors. While he was opening it, Axel studied the apartment and was glad to see that it wasn't all that impressive. A matching couch and chair in the living room, a good sized TV along with a few gaming systems. Axel missed playing video games with Roxas. The bedroom door was closed – Axel didn't want to see it anyway – and the kitchen was pretty plain with scattered empty beer bottles throughout. It wouldn't be too hard to convince someone to leave this place…

However, Axel's attention was drawn away from surveying the apartment when out of the corner of his eye he saw Roxas pull out what was in the box, then quickly shove it back in.

"What is it?" he asked curiously and strode towards the boy, a hesitant smile forming on his lips. It was either a bad thing… or something Roxas didn't want Axel to see…

"Ugh, I can't believe this," Roxas grumbled, closing the package back up. He whirled around and shoved it at Axel. "Take it back."

"What?" Axel laughed incredulously, holding his hands up to refuse taking the box. So apparently it was a bad thing. Finally, some good news. "I can't do that. Plus, it's not even yours, it's Reno's."

"Just take it back, Axel," the shorter man demanded, stepping forward again. "And don't look inside it either."

"Wait a sec, Rox," the redhead said. "I'm not doing anything until I know what's in there."

The blond blinked at him in dismay and Axel caught the faintest blush begin to appear on his cheeks from embarrassment. Damn. "It's…" Roxas began, avoiding green eyes. "I lost a bet to Reno when we were playing poker a few weeks ago. The deal was, if I lost, I would have to wear something he bought for me…" Axel's eyebrows raised and his curiosity was peeked even more. Continuing with a disgruntled noise, Roxas said, "I accepted because I thought I'd win and… it wouldn't be that bad if he was buying it, but… I… didn't expect this…"

"Well, what is it?" Axel pressed again, innocently, trying desperately to keep an amused grin from his face.

"Just… if you have to know, just look at it yourself…" Roxas sighed, turning away. Taking the package cautiously from him, Axel eagerly revealed its contents.

"Wow…" was all he said at first, picking up part of the attire in one hand and examining it. Surprised at the boldness and general sexiness of the outfit, he cleared his throat. "Jeez, Roxas, you should have known that if he was going to get you something, he was going to get you something good."

"Shut up," the blond said irritably. As Axel looked from the flustered blond to the clothing in his hands, a slow smirk spread across his face.

He had an idea of how to get back at Reno.

"I'll tell you what, Rox," Axel said nonchalantly, taking the rest of the outfit out of the box and walking up beside the younger man. "I'll take this off your hands and pretend I never delivered a package here–"

"–Seriously?" Roxas perked up and turned to face him. "Thanks so much–"

"But, you're going to have to show me what you look like in it first."

Luckily, Axel's grin didn't fade when Roxas' expression fell into a disbelieving glare. The idea was just too good.

"You're kidding," the blond deadpanned.

"Nope!" Axel said enthusiastically. "Those are your options. Either wear it for Reno – for whatever purposes, throw it out and then face him when he finds out – since I'll tell him, or-" Roxas' scowl almost threw Axel off and he paused, but kept his composure. "-or you can show me for just a minute and then everyone can forget about the whole thing!"

"Axel…"

"What?" the addressed man asked, making sure to remain harmless sounding. "Remember when you made me wear a pink camisole for a whole day? Friends aren't friends unless they embarrass each other every once in a while." The blond didn't respond so Axel lowered his tone of voice and spoke slower. "I'm totally serious, Roxas."

Slowly taking the outfit back from him, Roxas studied Axel as if he was trying to see if his best friend had different intentions. The redhead kept his face remotely blank except for the small, reassuring smile on his mouth. His heart was pounding, and Roxas of all people probably knew that Axel didn't want to see it just for a laugh. Still, the boy muttered a 'fine' and disappeared into the bathroom to change. Axel took a seat at the table to wait, knee jiggling impatiently.

There was a ruckus behind the door, the sounds of stumbling and cursing, and it made Axel wonder just what the hell was going on in there. He began to think that Roxas might be trying to escape through a window until he heard the blond speak.

"…You want me to put on…everything?"

"Of course, Roxas. It's not even worth it if you don't," Axel replied languidly.

"Christ, Axel, I'm not going to do this!" Roxas shouted through the door.

"Yes you are!" Axel shouted back. "Unless you want Reno to see…"

"This is so embarrassing!"

"Oh alright, I'm sure you'd love to prance around like a girl for your boyfriend, huh? Totally less embarrassing."

The door to the bathroom swung open so abruptly that it hit the wall. Axel blinked hard and stared at the sight of Roxas leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed and scowling at the ground.

Okay, so he didn't expect it to look that hot.

Axel's eyes roamed over Roxas' subtle curves, his legs covered in red stockings which were attached by a thick ribbon on each leg to a small, red, see-through lace skirt. Matching panties were underneath – this was no doubt an outfit meant to seduce. The top was the same material as the little skirt, though Axel couldn't see much of it because Roxas' arms were blocking the way. Nonetheless, Axel swallowed nervously and almost regretted telling the blond to wear it because of how turned on it was already making him. The redhead had never seen Roxas looking hotter. After a moment the blond looked up hesitantly, feeling self-conscious under the man's gaze.

"Well?" he asked expectantly, though his tone of voice wasn't as strong as normal. "You've seen it, can I take it off now?"

"N-no…" Axel rasped and cleared his throat, remembering that he was supposed to laugh. He fake-snickered a bit, feigning absolute amusement. "No you've got to… come closer and let me see better, stop crossing your arms."

After a muttered curse word, Roxas huffed and made his way over closer to the table, not making eye contact again. This allowed Axel to stare more at the younger man's perfect stomach, how creamy and soft his skin looked and just in general how fuckable he was at the moment. Despite his lack of womanly features, Axel thought Roxas looked more stunning in this than even a woman like Tifa could. It was taking everything in Axel not to just throw him down on the table right then and there. He could picture Roxas riding him in this outfit, fucking himself on the man's cock to make himself come, panting and one strap of the top slipping off of his shoulder. Just one element to the fantasy was missing; Axel couldn't get a clear view of the top since Roxas was still crossing his arms.

"It fits you perfectly," Axel told him in a teasing voice, trying his best to sound entertained and not aroused. "Just… stop standing there looking like you want to kill someone."

Roxas unfolded his arms finally and balled his fists, leaning forward and fixing Axel with a defiant stare. "I do want to kill someone."

That was the Roxas he knew, and Axel couldn't help but grin since after several months of dating some dude and even in lingerie the boy hadn't changed a bit. "Well, kill Reno first, not me. Wasn't my idea," the redhead said defensively, taking in the fact that he could see the pink of Roxas' nipples through his top. "Though he was able to pin your size just right… He also has excellent taste…" And Axel meant that in more ways than one.

"Yeah, okay, I get it…" Roxas grumbled, pulling at the skirt uncomfortably. "I'm glad I can pull off looking like a girl."

"You don't look like a girl…" Axel told him honestly. You look better. You look beautiful.

Looking at Roxas dressed like that, Axel wished he could tell the blond what it did to him. Roxas was hard enough to resist in the first place, which was why Axel had been staying away until he had more of his life in order. This was the first time the redhead had ever seen him looking vulnerable, soft and delicate. It just made everything worse.

Finally Roxas looked at him again, bit his lip and their eyes met. Blue irises widened, recognizing the desire on his friend's face.

"I'm cold," Roxas said quickly. "I'm going to get out of this stupid thing."

"Uh, go ahead," Axel stammered, but Roxas was already bolting towards the bathroom door.

While he was in there Axel stared up the ceiling, trying his best to picture something else, to think of anything else. Nothing seemed to work, since by the time Roxas came out with the lingerie in his hands, Axel was still undeniably hard.

"Here…" Roxas said awkwardly, holding the clothes out to Axel. The redhead took them, put them back in the box and inconspicuously held it at the level of his hips, covering his hard-on.

"Think I've been here a little longer than fifteen minutes," he said shakily, glancing towards the door. "I should go…" Roxas gave him an unreadable look, leaning forward just a bit.

"Alright," he said, sounding disappointed but Axel was sure it was his imagination. "Well I'm glad to see you again… and we're going to hang out… normally soon, whether you want to or not."

"Y-yeah," Axel nodded frantically, walking awkwardly over to the door. "Definitely. I'll… see you soon, Rox."

Said boy opened the door for him and Axel scurried out, waving with a fake smile plastered on his face as they both said goodbye. Axel didn't even take a lunch thanks to how much time he spent in his mail car.

That wasn't exactly the type of reunion he had in mind.

-

It was days before Axel saw either of the residents of apartment thirteen again. Days of being tortured by fantasies of Roxas, ones worse than he had ever dared to even think of before. Fantasies of Reno also wormed their way into his mind, betraying his newfound disdain for the man. The redhead hated himself for still being attracted to him, but his heart and his libido often did disagree on things. The two men were so different from each other, but it didn't make Axel want them any less. He wanted them both, but he didn't want them to be together.

How ironic it was that taking a last minute job had led him to discover what was going on with his best friend and make his desire for him only grow stronger. What were the odds that his best friend's boyfriend would make him weak at the knees, plagued with lust and jealousy? The man infuriated him, impassioned him, excited him, drove him mad.

So after another day where neither of the objects of Axel's desires were to be seen, he almost considered it a good thing; the redhead had no idea what he would do if he saw Reno again. His route in the apartment complex was done, so he was at least able to relax a bit. Had he known better, he wouldn't have let his guard down.

As Axel was walking down the stairwell, wondering if he should text Roxas to see if he was home, out of nowhere he was slammed against the wall. There was no time to think as a hand firmly grabbed his wrist and forced it above his head, no time to make a move for the pepper spray in his back pocket. People didn't normally assault the mailman, but Axel didn't even have to look at his attacker to know who it was, thanks to that alluring voice and unforgettable drawl.

"Look who I found, yo."

Reno.

Looked like Axel wasn't able to avoid him for long.

Even if Axel had been able to come up with some sort of plan for when he encountered Reno again it would have been no use. He was trapped, forced to share the same air with the man smirking at his surprised face. Reno leaned in close; pressing his weight against Axel's before the wide-eyed man even had a chance to respond. The smell of some kind of cologne hit Axel's senses, nearly rendering him speechless. His heart stopped beating for a moment and he was frozen in place, a mixture of emotions welling up inside him. This was the first time he'd seen the red-haired man since he found out about Roxas. And judging from the way Reno had so forcefully pinned him, Axel was almost certain that he must have found out about the whole outfit-for-Roxas incident.

"Christ, Reno!" Axel finally breathed, struggling to free his wrist, but the man only tightened his grip. "What do you want?"

"Thought I was makin' that pretty obvious…" Reno hummed, tilting his head to the side playfully. Cleverly releasing the arm that Axel could do nothing with since it was clutching his mailbag, he slipped his hand underneath the man's shirt.

"Don't you have a boyfriend?" Axel demanded acridly, seriously pissed off now that he knew Roxas was dating this guy who continued to hit on him every time their paths crossed.

Reno's smile faltered a little and his eyebrows disappeared underneath his hair. "You… You've met him?"

Axel snorted, squirming a bit. "Yeah. I've met him." Funny, Reno had the same reaction to that question as Roxas almost. And Roxas apparently hadn't told him that they were best friends…

"Cute, huh?" Reno put forward like it was normal to have a conversation on a stairwell with a hand underneath someone's shirt. He didn't even back off at all, Axel couldn't believe the nerve he had.

"Sure," Axel shrugged indifferently, trying to ignore the disloyal feelings from how his body was responding to the man. "I don't think he'd appreciate you feeling up the mailman though."

Blue eyes narrowed slightly and Reno replied with, "What he doesn't know won't hurt him, yo."

Axel wished that his hands were free so that he could punch the guy in the face and he thought, Not if I tell him, 'yo'.

"That reminds me though," Reno said, completely unaware of Axel's anger and letting his fingers idly brush the man's abdomen. "Have you delivered any packages? I should have gotten one a few days ago."

Lips twitching into a small smirk, Axel's mood lightened a little. Finally he could get some pay-back. "Package? No, I don't remember having to leave you guys a package yet. Why?"

"Well I ordered something for Roxas to wear," the man with dark red hair explained with a snicker and Axel nodded slowly as if he didn't know. "And I'm preeeetty sure he won't be too happy with what it is. So I just want to make sure he doesn't get rid of it if I'm not there…"

"Oh I see," Axel said and skillfully hid his elation that Reno had no clue what happened. The image of Roxas in the actual outfit popped into his mind and it was so hard not to smile triumphantly. "Well I'll be sure let you know if I do, then…"

"Thanks," Reno said smoothly, eyeing him curiously because of the tone of voice that he used. Continuing his light caresses against the other's skin to get a reaction, he went on conversationally, "You know, for someone who lets me touch them whenever I want, you don't seem to like me very much, yo."

That was it. Axel couldn't hold up the act anymore. Reno was hitting on him and touching him again; he had Roxas all to himself and didn't even appreciate it. Setting the redhead with a challenging look and seeking to let out even a little of his frustration, Axel responded, "You don't really give me a choice, and I don't like shitheads who get in my way when I'm trying to fucking work."

"…Wow," Reno commented dryly, unfazed. "You have a dirty mouth, Axel. Wouldn't mind if you worked that on me." He dug his nails into the vulnerable man's flesh, grin widening at the sound he drew out. Any confident barrier that Axel had put up was shattered as he felt his face start to color from the unexpected reply and the heated air between them.

Despite everything and all of the negative feelings Axel had towards Reno, the postman couldn't deny that he was attracted to him. His skin seemed to burn after every little touch from the man and part of him couldn't really blame Roxas for going so fast with him. Reno just had this power about him, an irresistible aura of seduction, the way he smelled, moved and touched was enough to drive anyone crazy. Axel thought he might lose it any at moment. The man studied Axel's face and smirked, seeming to catch on entirely. He leaned in and connected his lips to the pinned man's neck, nibbling softly and leaving a trail with his tongue.

"F-fuck, what are you doing?" Axel practically whimpered, arching his neck without even realizing.

"Don't really know," Reno mumbled and continued to mark his throat. "Whatever feels good, yo."

"We're… in a stairwell…" Axel pointed out, releasing a shuddering breath. Part of him was screaming for giving into this man who was pretty much his rival, the other washed with pleasure at finally feeling of Reno's mouth for the first time after constant teasing.

"So let's go up to my apartment then," the man offered, sliding his hand up further to tease a nipple. The sensation was new to Axel and he let out a moan; betraying any hope he had of pretending he didn't like it. Getting out of this situation now would be a difficult task, seeing as the redhead was not only trapped, but heavily aroused as well. At the moment all his thoughts revolved around Reno, his smell and everything he was doing was completely intoxicating.

"But… I…" Axel tried in vain to come up with some sort of excuse or plea, but it was kind of hard when his whole body was ready to go. He only continued to stammer, until Reno drew back and sealed their mouths in a kiss to shut him up. Lips parted almost immediately, mouths and bodies pressed together roughly. It was a passionate kiss, but not romantic, more demanding, lustful and violent with a hidden hatred. Each was the perfect height for the other, allowing their hips to grind together and bring out satisfied groans. The two struggled for dominance but Reno clearly had the upper hand, already having Axel wedged between himself and the wall. Once they finally broke away to breathe, Reno grinned at him smugly.

"You were saying?"

"Fuck you," Axel gasped, wrenching his hand free in order to grab Reno by the hair and kiss him again. It didn't last long because the sound of someone coming down the stairwell met their ears and the two broke apart again, this time Reno kept his distance. As they waited for whoever it was to pass by, they straightened their hair and clothes, trying to look as casual as possible – not like they were just making out.

"Reno, I've been looking – Axel?"

The pair of redheads spun around to see a confused Roxas at the top of the stairs, glancing back and forth between them.

Roxas.

Oh, fuck.

"Heeey, Roxas," Reno greeted, already beginning to walk up towards him. "Did you just get back?"

"Yeah…" the blond said, sounding distracted as he kept his puzzled gaze on Axel still.

"Uh, hi, Roxas…" Axel called up to him, scratching the back of his head and praying that there were no obvious hickeys on his neck. He felt sick. What had he just done? He almost wanted to throw himself down the stairs for allowing Reno to seduce him like that, when for days he'd been hating his guts.

Finally reaching the end of the stairs, Reno placed a hand on the small of Roxas' back and connected their lips together quickly. Roxas kissed back, but his eyes remained open and trained on Axel. The postman felt the inexplicable urge to light the whole place on fire. Those lips had just been kissing him barely a minute ago, now they were claiming his best fucking friend.

"We were just having a quick chat, yo," Reno clarified simply, nodding at Axel. "You came back just in time. So let's go." Wrapping an arm around Roxas, the redhead tried to lead him away but the shorter man pushed him off.

"Hold on," Roxas said, tone of voice suspicious. "I wanna have a 'quick chat' with Axel."

Smile falling, Reno shifted his weight and looked like he was about to argue but decided against it. "A'right. See you in a few, then…" As he was leaving he smirked at Axel behind the blond's back and stuck out his tongue, giving a short wave of his hand. The redhead at the bottom of the stairs rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, waiting for Roxas to make his way down to his level.

"What were you guys talking about?" Roxas asked when he stopped a few steps above Axel, eyebrows drawn down almost as if in accusation.

Axel shook his head and laughed nervously, trying to shake the feelings of guilt and disloyalty from his shoulders. "Is that all you wanted to know? How about a 'hi, how are you, Axel?' or a 'great to see you again, best friend!'"

Roxas looked at him like he was crazy, voice flat. "Hi, how are you, Axel? What were you guys talking about?"

This only made Axel laugh again; he should have expected that from the blond. As he tried to think of something to say and calm his nerves, he decided to stall for time. "Why ask me and not him?"

"Because…" Roxas shrugged, looking annoyed. "It gives me an excuse to say hi."

Axel stared at him. Hadn't he just made Roxas say hi? "You don't need an excuse, Rox…" he said, tone a little sad and incredulous.

Sighing, Roxas gave him an apologetic look. "Right. Sorry. You two just looked… weird when I found you, that's all…"

Running a shaky hand through his hair, Axel took a deep breath and put on a guiltless face. "Actually, he only wanted to know if I had delivered any packages lately…" He smirked at the somewhat fearful expression on Roxas' face. "Don't worry, I told him that I hadn't." It wasn't a lie, exactly. He was just leaving things out…

"Oh okay," Roxas said, finally relaxing his shoulders. "Thanks again for, you know. Getting rid of it."

"No problem," the taller man said, giving him a genuine smile. "What are friends for?" The blond cracked his own half-smile and Axel felt a stab of guilt again.

"Oh yeah!" the boy said quickly as if he just remembered something. "This Saturday night Reno's going out with some friends. Do you want to come over and hang out while he's gone?"

Taken aback, Axel felt his heart swell a little at the invitation. His smile turned into a wide smirk and he stepped closer to the blond, placing a hand on the railing. Their fingers were just inches away, he noticed. "Why does it matter if he's there or not?"

Roxas blinked cutely at him now that they were more level on the stairway and hesitated before saying, "It… doesn't matter. I just thought it'd be a good chance to hang out and catch up. If you'd prefer he be there, then…"

"No, no," Axel insisted, waving a hand. Like hell he wanted Reno to be there, and thank god he never worked at night. "No, that sounds cool, I'm free."

"Good, come over around six." Roxas said, waved a goodbye and smiled at him as he headed back up the stairs, Axel watching him the whole way.

Once he was out of sight, the redhead cursed audibly and slumped against the wall, trying to make sense of all that just happened. He was such an idiot. How could he have given in to Reno so easily like that? And Roxas practically caught them! Damn Reno didn't even seem to care or show an ounce of shame when here Axel was, feeling like he had just cheated on Roxas and they had never even dated. And why had Roxas wanted to know what they were talking about? Did he suspect what they were doing? Or did he think that they were talking about him…?

Regardless of all the questions running through his head, one very prominent fact remained. Axel had an erection.

Sighing, he walked out of the building awkwardly and forlornly. For now it was back to his mail truck; figuring out questions would be saved for later.