Quick Disclaimer The one derogatory comment made in this chapter is not made to offend, or upset anyone. It's only to express the moment. I apologize if it's offending any readers.

Author's Note Nng – Roxas and Reno. I love me, you might not, but I sure do.

v3.0
Beautiful Monster

The following day, I made no move to get out of bed, my eyes tracing imaginary shapes along the popcorn ceiling. Last night's party turned into the biggest disaster of my life. It was too soon for us to meet, that's all. What he said was just a defense mechanism, right? – A way to pretend that he wasn't hurt. Three years ago, he said he loved me. Now what? He's marrying my own cousin. She isn't even pretty.

Whenever I replay the party in my head, I go from blushing furiously then to furious, in general. As I thought about dancing with Axel's twin brother, Reno, my heart raced. I have to admit that there is a definite attraction. Not because of actual feelings (I think.), but because I feel closer to Axel whenever I'm with Reno.

Does it even really matter, though? It all comes down to the fact that something had to have happened within the past three years that has made him do a complete three sixty and suddenly have this attraction to females (If Larxene is even really considered…female.), or maybe he always was. Maybe I was fooling myself into believing he was attracted to me. I want to ask Reno everything, to just spill my heart out and hope he pities me enough to tell me what was going on. But I expect that if I flat out asked, "Hey, just wondering when your brother stopped being a fag." I'd get slapped or told, "Ask him yourself." Sora was never remotely close to Axel, so asking him to venture into the Lion's den is too much. My next course of action?

Easy. Someone who was Axel's other best friend, the Mistress to our friendship, the only one I could trust to gather accurate information – For a small fee of juicy information on a certain little brunette.

Riku.

Mistress Riku was the mediator, so to speak. He refereed any fights that Axel and I were found in. We only spoke while the redhead was around, but we were kind of good friends, I guess. I haven't actually spoken to him since the day after Axel's departure at the train station. He might not recognize the number and ignore the call, but I'm desperate. I might be using him now, but who knows. Maybe we can rekindle our friendship or some other sappy shit you see in movies.

I scooted out of the bed, trying not to disturb Sora who was inconveniently blocking the sensible exit of my bed and snoring loudly. I walked over to my night stand, picking up my Samsung Galaxy, quickly scrolling my contacts to the R section. Clicking the green "Send" button, my breath hitched.

I was nervous.

It rang twice before it clicked on to a groggy voice, "'ello?" I guess he did delete my number if he was questioning who was calling.

I gulped audibly, stuttering embarrassingly, a stupid habit of mine, "R-Riku?"

He must have recognized my voice because I could hear fabric rubbing together, then thumping onto the floor in a frantic manner, the tiredness in his voice falling with the sheets, "Roxas?"

"Hey." I elongated the 'ey' part longer than I should have. Mentally slapping myself, I started thinking of ways to casually pull myself out of this abnormally awkward situation.

"Holy shit, man! How have you been? It's been one hell of long time since we last spoke." His laughter was boisterous, echoing through the phone, "This is a random wake up call, but fantastic! Hey, are you busy later? We could catch up, you know, face-to-face. Oh man! I can't believe you're still alive!"

It took me a few minutes to catch up with his end of the excitement. I had to repeat everything back to myself slowly to fully understand what was going on. I know I haven't talked to him in years, but it's like our once-dead friendship is being rebuilt in five minutes, "Hey, Riku. I've been better and I know it's been a while. I'm not really busy, just with Sora. And sure, where do you want to meet up?" I sighed, "It'd be great to catch up, besides, and I'm done with being depressed and antisocial."

"Excellent." He sighed, "You still at the same place? What am I thinking? Of course you are. I'll swing by around two this afternoon, be ready!" We said our goodbyes and I placed my phone back on the night stand, my wrist being grabbed by a hand protruding from under the covers.

I stared at that hand, a hundred thoughts running through my head simultaneously. I called Riku up out of the blue and then, bam! He wants to hang out. Not even a question as to why I called. He was a lot like Sora in some ways; I suppose that's why I always hung out with him before Axel left. He just radiated happiness.

I tugged on my hand, causing the pale fingers to tighten against my skin, "So-ra, what do you want?"

"Who was that?" A muffled voice called out, seemingly scared.

"Your favorite person in the entire world, whom we have a date with at two." That news alone was more than enough to get Sora to jump out of the bed. It was like telling a little girl that it was Christmas morning and she got a new puppy – He was on his feet in no time, rushing quickly to my dresser to find something to wear.

Sora loves Riku.

But for all we knew, it was one-sided. Riku never spoke to anyone about his feelings, much less Sora. Riku was also famous for being my brunette's other best friend, but he was either too preoccupied fantasizing about said Silverette or too scared. I tried not to speak to him since he, Axel, and I were equivalent to the three musketeers before Mrs. Rossi passed away. Afterwards, we all broke apart and never spoke to each other again – She was our glue, our rock. She wasn't just Axel's mother; she was mine and Riku's as well.

Those were the days I try to forget, especially after last night. Unfortunately, Sora couldn't stay away from him. And even though he would tip-toe around my questions, I always knew. The days he would leave my house, wearing a nice shirt and some of my Usher cologne, he tried to pass it off as a job interview or something equally impossible for him.

"Sor," I chuckled, watching him hurriedly sprint around the room, "I'll head down and cook us some pancakes while you get ready."

By 'us', I meant myself; because we were meeting Riku, I knew better. Sora will lock himself in the bathroom, making sure every aspect of his appearance was absolutely perfect, which normally took until we had to leave, and then wait until his Knight in Shining Armor, Sir Riku, offered him lunch.

Spending the day with Riku was more fun than I had originally expected. He took us to the local ice skating rink that we used to spend hours at with Axel and Reno, then headed to Sora's favorite Ice Cream parlor, Twilight Twisty Treat. It was complicated trying to catch up with Riku with Sora distracting me by continuously staring at him like Riku was the waffle cone filled with Vanilla ice cream, topped with those ever-so-satisfying rainbow sprinkles that he was eating instead of the actual treat he was holding.

"So, Roxas," Riku turned all his attention to me, much to Sora's dismay, "How have you really been? I heard they were back."

I dabbed at my mouth with a napkin, removing any embarrassingly placed ice cream that might have taken refuge on my face before I responded, "I've been better. And yeah, they are. We went to their party last night." I kept my eyes focused on my hands, attempting to hide the obvious sadness in my voice.

He sighed heavily, "Oh? I was going to go but I had a few things to take care of, so I didn't have the time. Fill me in?"

This is when Sora decided to stop acting like a school girl and join in on the conversation coherently, "Reno invited us to the party, we go, Roxas gets thrown into a Rossi brother sex-sandwich, and then finds out Axel is really marrying his cousin, Larxene."

Oh my God. Sora keeps his mouth shut for everything else, but you set him in front of Riku and he word vomits whatever information the Silverette wants to know.

Riku looked shocked, "Marrying Larxene?" I nodded, and upon confirmation, he doubled over in laughter, "A-are you serious?"

I pouted, "Yes! It's not funny. He's the biggest tease on the planet. He was all over me, and then goes, 'Oh, bee-tee-double U, me and Larxene? Yeah, we're getting married.' Who does that?"

"Okay, okay, you're right." Riku calmed himself down after noticing how upset I was getting, "But in all honesty, this doesn't sound like him. Why would he marry a girl? He loved you to death. He never shut up about you!" He chuckled, recalling the past, "I remember when you weren't around, it was still always about you. 'Roxas this' or 'Roxas that'. He had a different story about you every day, 'Riku, man! You would never guess what Roxas said today!' You'd have thought you two were dating."

I wish. I sighed at the new information, Axel never told me he talked about me. Had I known earlier, I might not have waited until he left.

Riku continued with his walk down memory lane, "Roxas, you were his everything. You say his mother was his world, maybe she was. But you? – You were his universe. He practically worshipped the ground you walked on. We always asked him why he wouldn't ask you out, but he always avoided the subject like the plague." He put his hand on my shoulder, lightly squeezing for comfort, "If he's marrying Larxene, there's a logical reason."

I sat in silence, both of my friends staring at me – Sora's with concern, and Riku's with sympathy. The news was slowly sinking into my brain, "Hey Riku…" I said, absentmindedly, "Can you do me a favor?"

The look in his eyes disappeared when he heard the serious tone of my voice, nodding, "Anything you need."

"Find out why." I said simply. Things I never knew that Axel did, things that hurt me to hear now, things I wish he told me before he left. Maybe, just maybe, if I had known all of that, I could have prevented all this from happening.

But the past is the past – It won't change anything now.

The rest of the day passed in a rush, though I now wish it hadn't. The earlier conversation about Axel had all but been forgotten, and the last few hours we had together we spent just joking and playing around as the friends we were. It was something I hadn't experienced in a while, so being around someone besides Sora was something different and calming.

Before heading home, Riku pulled me off to the side, "You know the deal, spill while he's distracted."

I giggled, "So touchy, Riku. That excited?" I joked. His eyes narrowed and I threw my hands up in defense, "Sorry, sorry. Alright, look, he's practically in love with you. But no matter what, he's waiting for you to make the first move, though I'm pretty sure he'll jump at the chance to say yes."

He nodded once, discreetly, since Sora had returned from the bathroom. I invited Riku to stay the night, but he declined, which in turn upset Sora. We said goodbye, parted ways, then Sora and I headed back to the apartment in a comfortable silence.

"Will you be alright on your own?" He asked as I headed to my room.

At the threshold, I turned, one hand on the doorframe, "Yeah," I smiled, "I'll be fine. If anything, I'll come get you. Good night, Sora."

"G'night, Rox."

The sunrise woke me up the following morning, and I had a sudden burst of energy and inspiration, I ran into Sora's room to wake him up, "Sora! Sora, wake up now!"

My brunette best friend rolled over, eyes blinking open groggily, "Wha'ddya wan?"

"I know how to get back at Axel."

His eye twitched, "You woke me up at," Sora glanced to his Harajuku Girls alarm clock, "Seven thirty in the morning to tell me that?"

I nodded vigorously. He sighed, sitting up, "Okay, I'll bite. What is it?"

"Reno." I said, like it was the most obvious answer in the world.

"What?" He gave me a skeptical look, "My brain doesn't function in the morning!"

Or at all, "Sora, if he's going to marry my cousin, then I can date this brother." I smirked, "It's a two-for-one deal. Make him jealous; get something good out of it."

He smiled deviously back at me, jumping out of bed and rushing into my room, pulling me with him. This, in Sora's terms meant: You're going to tell me everything.

"Well," I began, "I had a dream that I kissed Reno. And I mean…I didn't exactly dislike it. I think he's into me, why dance with me like that, right? Okay, anyways. The last thing I said to Axel was something about keeping it in the family. I think the only way to really get at him is by doing what he's doing to me, and date his brother."

Sora stared at me, "Roxas," He smiled, "You're a monster – I love it!"

That afternoon I decided to put my plan into action, I picked up my cell and dialed a familiar number.

"Hello?" A voice called from the other end.

I gulped, "Hey, Reno. You busy today?" I heard something being set down as the phone seemed to shift.

"Nope, want to hang out at your place?" He questioned, I hummed a sound of agreement and I could practically hear him smiling through the receiver, "Alright, I'll be over in about fifteen minutes."

My heart pounded suddenly at the thought of seeing Axel's redheaded twin brother. I wasn't sure why, but I was really excited at seeing him and spending time with him – Alone. I know I shouldn't be, and that this is all for completely selfish reasons, but I can't help it.

"Sora," I called, "Don't you have to go to Riku's or something? Reno is coming over in fifteen minutes and I don't need you cockblocking me."

He giggled, ruffling my blonde spikes as he walked up to me, "Don't worry, I'll leave. Call me when he leaves!" He waved by and left, leaving me to hurry around the house and do a half-assed clean up job before Reno came over.

As I finished making my bed, my doorbell ring and my heart stopped. I straightened myself up and casually strolled to the door, opening it with a smirk.

"Hey." Reno simply said, leaning down to kiss me on the cheek. I blushed and grabbed his hand, pulling him inside.

His eyes scanned around the living room, "Hah, this place hasn't change a bi–" I cut him off by pulling him down, crashing my lips against his. At first, his surprise caused him to be unresponsive but it seemed he warmed up quickly as his hands found their way to my hips.

He pulled away slightly, "Didn't think you were this happy to see me."

"I missed you – a lot." I lied. It's your brother I miss, you're just a replacement.

Reno purred then started kissing me again, pushing me back against a wall, moving to hold my hands above my head. His lips moved from my mouth to my jawline, then down to my neck. Reno removed one hand from restraining me to put under my shirt, his fingers going to tease at my nipples. I moaned slightly, arching into the touch as he sucked along my collarbone.

"This," He pulled the shirt with his teeth, "Off."

Obeying, I pushed him away slightly to pull the shirt off and toss it to the floor. I grabbed the loops in his jeans and pulled his pelvis crashing into mine, causing both of us to groan in unison. Reno continued to attack the newly exposed skin as my hands went to work on undoing that god forsaken denim he was wearing. I needed friction, and God did I need it now.

He must have noticed the trouble I was having focusing and just took his pants off himself, including his boxers, revealing his hardening erection. I stared at it for a second before ripping a hand away from his grip to take hold of him, pumping him slowly. Reno moaned into my neck, bucking his hips into my palm.

"P-pants," I stuttered, "Off. Mine." I couldn't even form a real response but he seemed to know what I was talking about as his hands pulled off the skin-tight jeans. He pulled away and knelt down in front of me, grazing his mouth outside my boxers against my own throbbing member.

"Oh my god," I moaned, grabbing the back of his head, "Stop t-teasing."

Reno chuckled, "Alright, alright." He pulled my boxers down, his hand gripping me and thumbing my leaking slit. I almost went over the edge when I felt his hot mouth envelope me. He placed a hand on my stomach to hold me against the wall and gripped me with the other, pumping me along with his mouth. I fisted his hair, trying so hard not to buck into him.

"R-Reno, don't…don't stop." I moaned, both hands digging into that red hair. My knees were about to buckle when I felt his throat clench around the head. It wasn't too long after that I felt a warmness build up in the pit of my stomach. No, not now! I thought frantically, it's too early! I can't…not this soon!

"A-almost, come…here." I breathed out, trying to calm myself slightly.

I grabbed his head, forcefully pulling him away from his sucking and up to my mouth, crashing our lips together. Grabbing his hips, I pulled him towards me, grinding our erections together. I gasped when he moaned into my mouth, our hips continuously gyrating in tandem. That warm feeling was form at the pit of my stomach, I'd have to assume it was for him as well when his hands hit the wall and his movements became more sporadic and rough. I wrapped my arms around his back, pulling his chest against mine, and thrust upwards against him. Sweat mixed with sweat, moans turned into screams, and within moments, I had release; my sticky substance splattering across both our chests and I knew he was close. I knelt down quickly, taking his twitching cock into my mouth, sucking hard and using my hand to pump him faster into his own ecstasy.

Reno grabbed a few of my spikes, pulling softly, "R-Roxas…I'm gonna…Gonna..." Before he could finish, he released into my mouth; I swallowed what I could when it reached my throat, smiling and slowly pulling my mouth off him. Wiping leftover cum from my mouth, I stood up and hugged him, nuzzling my face into his neck.

"Rox," He panted, "That's the best welcome home I've ever gotten." He kissed my forehead then headed towards my room, "Come shower with me?"

I smirked, "Sure."

What he really meant was, Ready for round two?

When Sora returned a few hours later, I was already cooking us lunch and it was extremely awkward, "So…"

I turned towards him, a look of confusion plastered on my face as I scurried about in the kitchen. He came up next to me and crossed his arms.

"Roxas, what happened? You're glowing."

"N-nothing." I blushed, turning the stove off and pulling the grilled cheese out of the pan. I watched him walk to the refrigerator, pulling out a couple of drinks.

"You're lying."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not!" I yelled, all but throwing his plate at him.

He chuckled, "If it was nothing, you wouldn't be blushing. Besides, you changed clothes, so you obviously had to shower – But why shower when someone is over…Unless you did something beforehand. Just admit it."

I sighed; I knew Sora taking those psychology classes in high school would prove to be destructive later on in life, "Okay, fine. We fooled around…a couple of times – But nothing too extreme!" I hid my blush behind my hands, ignoring my food.

He smiled triumphantly, "Rox, you really are a monster."

"I know." I groaned.

As if on cue, my cell phone started buzzing on the counter, some random Asian ringtone breaking the conversation signifying that I had some type of notification. I picked it up, unlocked the touch screen only to find I had a new text.

A text from Axel.

Why?

He knows.

A/N Longest chapter of this story to date – I'm quite proud of myself. No more Sora/Roxas fluff, unfortunately. I thought it was originally too awkward, so I switched it up. I like this version better. For those of you who never read my original version, I spared you. I didn't want it to get too heated, at least, not just yet. C; Pardon any errors, half-assed proofread - I'll fix any of them later.