Chapter Seven: Lean On Me

Home. How far away was it now? His small apartment, his little niche on the couch. Before all this, when he woke up at the same time every day, did the same mundane job, and the same boring routine, he had had this crazy thought, an insane notion. Maybe Roxas would like a little more excitement in his life. Maybe, oh, just maybe Roxas would enjoy a little thrill and a break from his routine.

What an idiot he had been, how ungrateful he had been for everything he had. There was nothing wrong with being boring. His life would go by without any complaints he couldn't handle, and he would be content with that. Sora was the one who loved all the adventure, and thrill-seeking was his twin's thing. Which was what got him in this damn mess in the first place. None of this would have ever happened, if Sora could have just been content with his life back home.

Home. He longed for it so much, wished to be there, instead of lying on this strange doctor's table, in some illegal clinic in the middle of nowhere. Now-a-days everywhere was the middle of nowhere to Roxas. He had no idea where they were, except on their way to the coast...or at least they had been. Now, they could be right back where they started for all he knew. The car ride felt like it took days, though in reality they got there in lightning speed. Riku was gone, taken as soon as the van pulled up in front of the house. The blonde was led to this room by Demyx. Xigbar had been needed elsewhere, thank heavens.

The door clicked open and a thin, pale man walked in. Presumably the doctor, if his lab coat and stethoscope were any indication. Roxas blinked blearily, his head, his body, every single cell he was composed of, were in pure agony. "So, you've had a little accident," The man's voice was oddly soothing, even if his eyes were cold and calculating. "How are you feeling?"

"Everything hurts," It must have been the fact that he was a doctor, and one was just expected to trust a doctor, that made Roxas comply so easily. That, or the hope to find some kind of relief from his crippling pain. The man nodded his head and looked down at his note pad, he had been about to write something before he was interrupted by Demyx's annoyed sigh.

Both the doctor and Roxas moved their eyes towards the man leaning against a counter, staring straight at the man in the lab coat. "Can you just get on with it, Vexen? You shouldn't even be keeping records of this. Xemas wouldn't like it, and you know that." All Demyx got as a response was silence. Vexen continued on just as he was before, his pen scratching a little furiously against his note pad. Roxas simply lay in silence, trying to breathe in a way that wouldn't hurt.

The muscle pain dug a memory out of his brain, one when he was 6 and his brother had gotten into an accident in the family van. Sora and their mother had been going to a soccer game, the brunette was so excited about the tournament, even if his brother and father couldn't make it. Roxas had been stuck at home, sick with heat stroke, when their mother's car was t-boned by someone running a red light. Luckily, he hit the empty passenger side, where Roxas and his father would have sat.

It was strange, and no one in the family understood it when it was talked about, but right after the accident, before the hospital or their mother had a chance to call the boys at home, the blonde suffered the same aches and pains as his twin brother. They passed it off as Roxas being in so much pain from vomiting all day, but their crazy Aunt insisted it was caused by a connection only twins share.

The agony was much worse now, but that was perhaps because he was experiencing the accident first hand. Whatever it was, a childish part of Roxas hoped his brother, wherever he was, could feel at least 1/3 of what he was feeling now. The men's voices brought him out of his thoughts, soon enough to catch Vexen grabbing something from one of his cabinets.

"Take these, they should help. I'm sure you'll be fine. The car is reinforced for high impact crashes. You're suffering from some whiplash, and there seems to be a few abrasions but that's all. You aren't paralyzed or anything." There was a sick smile spreading across the doctor's face, and it made a chill run down the length of Roxas' spine. Demyx was eyeing the exchange from his place leaning against the counter, and he spoke out before the other blondes could, chiming in like a concerned parent would.

"What are those? Does he gotta eat with them or what?" Vexen raised a delicate brow but nothing else, before turning to address the hit man's question.

"They're just Tylenol 3," A small wink and he left the room. Roxas looked down at the pill bottle that had at some point been placed in his hand and he opened the cap, tossing two into the palm of his hand. He wasn't entirely sure they were what the doctor had said they were, but at this point, he didn't care. Who the hell could the blonde trust now-a-days anyway? All he wanted was to feel nothing. No pain. Just numb. So, if these were something stronger, that would be just fucking lovely.

A firm grip on his achy wrist, stopped him from tossing both pills into his mouth, and Demyx appeared in his line of vision. "Maybe you should sit up, and have some water with one pill." Roxas glared from his place on the cot, the bright room light was hurting his eyes, and it probably would be easier to swallow these pills sitting down but he didn't want to move and upset his body. It was with great effort, and a slight struggle to not seem like a complete wuss, that Roxas sat up and took the glass of water Demyx was offering him. "It's not acid, I promise! I got it from the tap," There was a smile on the tanned face, and it was friendly. Nothing like the doctor's, and still Roxas felt like he trusted the doctor more.

"Whatever," A gulp of water and the pill was gone, Demyx making sure Roxas put the extra away. In 20 minutes tops, Roxas would feel nothing. At least, that was what he was hoping for. His body was starting to cool down, and his muscles were stiffening even more, so the pain would only get worse from there, unless these pills actually worked.

"Ready?" Demyx asked, taking a step towards the man before being stopped. Roxas shook his head, really not wanting to get up just yet. Sitting had required tremendous effort, he was not ready for the burden of walking and controlling his wounded body just yet.

"No, not yet."

It was no more than 10 minutes later, that his body was washed over with warmth. He felt drowsy, but nothing else. He looked over at Demyx, his head swinging around slowly and a little smile forming on his lips. "Mmm, these are great." It was a little bit of a slurr but the hit man heard clear enough. He shook his head, moving to help Roxas off the cot and onto the ground. The man didn't want to move yet, in fact, he didn't want to move ever, but he was too weak to fight. All he wanted was to sleep. He leaned heavily on Demyx as the man maneuvered him through the hallways, searching for the other people they had come in with. Roxas at this point, couldn't really recall who they were.

Out in the living room of the house, or the reception area, sat Axel and Xigbar. Riku was somewhere Roxas couldn't see, and as he slowly remembered what was happening, he worried about the silver haired man. Sure, he was his brother's lover and a trained killer, but no one deserved to die. "What's up with Blondie?" Axel's voice filled the quiet space quickly, and Roxas tried to focus on him. Demyx shrugged, and in the same move, hoisted the blonde up a little more.

"Vexen gave him some pain killers. He said they were Tylenol 3," Axel began to laugh, and took the bottle that was still clutched in Roxas hand, unbeknownst to him.

"I don't know what these are, but they ain't Tylenol. Some kind of painkiller, yeah, but I got Tylenol for my wisdom teeth and this wasn't it." With a flick of his wrist, the cap was open and he popped a few into his mouth. Roxas blinked blearily, before waving his arm out, trying to recapture his pills but his body felt like sludge.

"Axel, what the hell!" Demyx was the one to grab the bottle back, and stuff it into his pocket, away from the redhead and Roxas. Axel just smirked the entire time, sticking his tongue out with the pills sitting on it, before swallowing them. "You don't even know what those are!"

"Neither does he, but I'm in pain and I need these to sit and drive for another 5 hours, okay?" There was this dead silence among the men after that, and it came to Roxas in a trickle. They were going after Sora still. Even if they were all battered and bruised, the search would continue. He had to give it to them, if they had anything at all, it was dedication.

"Where's Riku?" Roxas croaked from his place clinging to Demyx's side. He was feeling heavier and heavier. He needed to sit, so maybe a car ride would be a good thing.

"He's going to stay behind...Now, we're burning day light! Let's get going ladies." Axel cracked his neck, rolled his shoulders, then popped all his knuckles, an orchestra of clacks and clicks filled the room and it made Roxas feel icky, for lack of a better word. The blonde had never liked those kinds of sounds, the idea of bones and joints snapping and cracking weirded him out.

No one questioned the redhead, and before Roxas could really think of a response, they were outside, in the blazing heat, walking towards another sleek sports car. This one seemed slightly roomier and was midnight black, almost like a spy car. The sun danced along the paint, making the car look slick, but hot as all hell. It was almost as if Axel could read the groups mind, as they all thought in unison...

"Yes, it has A/C, now quit your bitchin' and get inside."

It was a struggle to bend his body in the right ways, but Roxas crawled into the car, which at the moment, was an oven with the broiler on. Xigbar was the first to groan in despair. "You sick bastard, you lied!" It sounded like he was going to cry, but Axel ignored it easily, settling comfortably in his seat before locking the doors and turning on the A/C. Roxas thanked God it was a sophisticated car, and that everyone felt the cooling equally. It made him remember his car back home, if you could call that hunk of junk a car.

His eyelids were feeling like dead weights, when Xigbar put his hand on the man's lap. It was like someone had shocked him awake, and his eyes widened as he shrunk into the farthest corner he could fit into. Xigbar smiled wide, and deep in his toothy smile, Roxas spotted the glint of a gold tooth. "I don't think you should be sleeping just yet."

He took the advice to heart, as much as his body was begging him to shut his eyes. He watched the landscape, or at least what he could make out as landscape. He knew the greenish, yellow blurs were grass and every now and then, he could almost make out the telephone wires. That was what he keep concentrating on, to keep himself awake. He'd try and spot every pole or road sign before Axel zoomed past it. It wasn't too long before staring outside started to make him feel sick, and all the man's focus was ripped away from the windows and put on his spinning head. Demyx was somehow the first one to notice Roxas didn't look quite so good.

"Axel, I think Roxas is gonna hurl," Were his exact words, before the car screeched to a halt and Axel was in motion, pulling Roxas out of the car and grabbing his head, moving his hair from his face and bending him over. The blonde didn't have much time to react, not to Axel or his vomit as it shot out of his throat. Axel held him firm, and Roxas could feel himself leaning more and more against the strong hand on his forehead. There wasn't much vomit, but a lot of retching and tears streaming down the blonde's face. His body didn't feel anything, but his insides were on fire. Axel let go of him, almost like he'd just realized he was still helping Roxas even if he didn't need to. The man was leaning on his knees, hunched over trying to catch his breath. He'd never seen anyone react that quickly, and for some reason, he found it hilarious.

He could feel Axel watching him as he chuckled, or more accurately, made odd rasping sounds, which could have been why Axel was staring. "I-I'm sorry...it's just...that was crazy."

"I've got reflexes like a cat." Axel winked and the way Roxas' stomach swished around brought on another wave of trying to throw up. It could have been his drug muddled mind, but for the first time since the "trip" started, he didn't argue with himself or deny his attraction to the other man. Axel was handsome, no matter how many people he may have killed or however many crimes he may have committed. He was handsome, and Roxas was too tired to fight against his brain right now. "You think you're okay now? There's a motel a few blocks away. We can make it there and stay until you start feeling better." Roxas sent a grateful smile towards Axel, somehow managing to nod his head. He felt Axel grab hold of him again and begin leaving him to the car. Roxas clung on tight, or as tightly as he could, positive that if he had to keep himself upright, he wouldn't. "I can't say I don't like dopey Roxas though, he's very handsy and mellow." Axel's grin was huge, and it was then Roxas realized that he was holding on to one of the redhead's butt cheeks quite firmly. Cheeks ablaze, he quickly moved his hand, knotting both around the redhead's waist. Axel teased him, telling him to leave it there as he lead the mortified man back to the car. If the blond hadn't puked himself dry moments before, he was sure the sheer embarrassment would have made him vomit himself into oblivion.


A/N: Holy fucking hell, you guys!
I can't believe I haven't posted anything in at least 2 years...I am so sorry. I can't even express how sorry I am in words.
I know many of you probably aren't even still reading, so this apology might never make it. But it's heeeere!
I know some people are though, because I've gotten reviews.
I finally have internet now! I'm trying to get stories lined up for uploads!
I promise I'm going to be active agaaaaain!

Love Always, Sharmander~