Summ.
Roxas never cared what his dad did with his life. Until he fell in love with the boyfriend's younger brother. They're engaged to be married, but will the young lovers stand up for their relationship? I mean it's not REALLY incest!
It is written in first person, chapters switching viewpoints from Axel to Roxas. Axel for odd numbered chapters, Roxas for even numbered chapters.
…
When we arrived at the hospital, my dad held my hand tightly as we waited in the evaluation ward. The room looked like a prison cell, and I was terrified. Dad either thought the same or sensed my fear, because he wrapped his arm around my shoulder, hugging me.
"I'm sorry, Roxas. I wouldn't have brought you here if I didn't think it might help… Please forgive me."
I shook my head, trying to wordlessly inform him that it was okay. "Where… where's Axel…?"
Dad frowned, concerned. "I… I don't know for sure. He… he's probably getting checked out by a doctor too. He got hurt… pretty badly… back there."
Nervous, I prodded for more information. I couldn't remember much, just that my dad had been covering my eyes. "What happened? Is he going to be okay?"
He gave me a soft, reassuring smile. "I'm sure he will be," his voice didn't sound very convinced of his own words. I went to protest, but a doctor came in to speak with me. They turned to my father.
"Mister Strife, we're going to have to ask you to step out of the room for a bit," the doctor gestured at the door.
Dad clutched my hand. "W-what for? I don't want to leave Roxas alone like this…"
"It's for the sake of an accurate evaluation… We're sorry, it's just procedure. We'll be able to get a more reliable evaluation if we can speak to Roxas alone."
He frowned, looking at me. He gave my hand a gentle squeeze, smiling softly. "I'm going to see how Axel's doing, okay? You'll be alright, Roxas. I promise."
When Dad left, they made me give my best recollection of everything, they asked me a lot of really prying questions about my childhood, my relationships, about the incident. I knew that I was supposed to answer honestly, but I hesitated. I was afraid of saying too much. I wanted to know where Axel was, what happened while my dad was holding me. The doctor just turned all my questions back on me with more questions. It was infuriating.
After what seemed like far too long, the doctor let my dad back into the room and left us to talk alone.
"Dad…" he cut me off.
"Axel's… fine."
Relieved, I nodded in acknowledgement. "Dad, be honest. What do you know? What happened to Axel and…" I trailed off. The name felt dirty in my mouth. I didn't know how to complete the sentence, but Dad nodded in understanding.
"I know… what Reno did. With you," the pain in his voice was so thick. I couldn't tell if he were angry or on the verge of tears… and I couldn't tell whether it was Reno or myself he felt that way towards. My mouth was agape, however.
"H-how—" I wasn't sure which question to ask first, but settled for, "I'm so sorry, Dad, I…"
His eyes avoided mine. "Axel told me earlier today… I should have listened to you… if I had been a better father and listened when you warned me about Reno he wouldn't have— he wouldn't have hurt you…" Dad was shaking, trying to hold back sobs.
"Wait—" I grabbed my dad's hand, "—you… you aren't mad at me? For… for ruining your relationship…?"
Dad met my gaze, mouth agape. "What? No, god no! Roxas, you mean the world to me… if Reno is the kind of person who would… do such things… then he wasn't who I thought he was…" I went to interject, "Regardless of his reasons. Axel… told me about that too…"
The guilt was weighing so heavily on me. "I'm so sorry, Dad… I… you must think I'm…"
He hugged me, his embrace comforting. "Roxas, you're my whole world. I… you felt so cast aside… I'm so sorry. You've been suffering your entire life because I was too afraid to wake up and be the kind of father you needed. I'm going to change that. You… and Axel, and myself. I can't ignore problems and hope they go away anymore. I brought you here to see a doctor so we can get you the help you need… we're going to make this right."
What? Did… did Dad think I was crazy? Had he given up on me? The despair was overwhelming. I thought I'd finally started to fix things with Dad, but… was I just a hindrance? After what I did to his first relationship since my mom… of course my dad wouldn't want to deal with me anymore…
"You won't be alone," he took my hands and squeezed gently, looking into my sorrowful gaze with one of resolution. "I… I need help too, Roxas. I know I do. I want to be there for you while you heal… but I know that I need some guidance just as much as you do. And I'll do everything I can for you, Roxas, even if it means finally admitting all of that to myself."
"You… you're going to do it too?" my eyes widened in disbelief. Dad nodded resolutely.
"We'll be a family for real, Roxas. I want to support you. I'm not going to let anything stand in the way of the time we have left together. Never… never again… I'll never leave you helpless again."
"Dad…"
He kissed my forehead. "There's one more thing I want to tell you."
I nodded.
"There's a boy outside who also needs help. Someone just as lost as we are. And I think the person who can help him the most… is going to be the one that he loves more than anything in the world."
My eyes widened. He… he couldn't mean…
"Axel needs you now more than ever, Roxas. I'm… I'm so happy you have each other. I'm so grateful…"
Tears welled up in my eyes as I threw my arms around my dad's neck. "I love you, Dad…"
"I love you too, son," he embraced me tightly, whispering something into my ear before leading the way to the waiting room where Axel was. It was going to be a long and painful road. But I wouldn't be alone anymore. I had Axel, whom I was free to love after all this time. And… finally… I had my dad. The promise we made kept me warm. "I am so blessed to have you, Roxas… Never let me forget that again."