E l e v e n

xo . Kyorii

Hey guys! Since I haven't written a oneshot in over a year (and haven't updated in like two months... yeah I survived the hurricane LOL), I decided to write a two-shot November 11 special. Since 11/11/11 doesn't happen everyday, I wanted to make the most out of it with this RokuNami two-shot :) Yup, I'm switching it up to the blondies. They need some lovin'.

one

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11:11

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"Make a wish!"

.

"- and it's due in eleven days, Roxas. Eleven days! Can you believe that? That's insane! Tell me you think that's insane, Rox, because I think it is. The nerve of that guy..."

"Mhm. Yeah. Uh huh."

"I mean, doesn't it seem a little rushed if it's due in eleven days? I like to take my time for art! Plus I already have a lot on my plate and adding this doesn't help. At all. He expects so much of me a- Rox, are you even listening?"

"Mhm. Yeah. Uh huh."

She sighed at his lack of support. It wasn't until the same "Mhm. Yeah. Uh huh." sequence was repeated when she hadn't said anything that made her realize that he wasn't really listening. She walked over to the side of the computer desk and picked his phone off the side with an arched brow and an authoratative hand on her hip. "Ahem."

Her companion spun the computer chair 45 degrees clockwise to face her with a sheepish, apologetic grin, "Sorry, Nene."

Namine couldn't help but blush at his appearance. He was charming as ever in his fitting business getup. It was the required attire for his job, after all. Caelum Industries would have wanted nothing less than the cleanest, most professional looking employees to represent them.

The blonde shook her head and focused on the situation at hand. The voice recorded sequence played again as she waved the phone in his face. Roxas' hand brushed over hers for a brief second before he took the phone back with a cheeky smile.

"Have you listened to a word I said?" The ashen-haired beauty asked, voice laced with austerity.

He pouted and gave her an honest answer, "No. B-but I have a perfectly good explanation!" After a playful eye roll, she allowed him to continue. He gestured a hand towards their large LCD monitor proudly. Namine leaned towards the screen to get a better look, making out the words "do a barrel roll" on the Google search engine.

"You won't believe it, Nams. When you type do a barrel roll in the search bar, the screen will actually do a barrel roll." To prove it, he refreshed the page and showed her. Indeed, the screen did roll.

But Namine didn't look amused. Not today.

"Aww." Roxas closed the browser and stood up from the chair, cupping the petite girl's cheeks in his hands, "Nene's sad. What's wrong Nene?" She removed his hands from her face with a frown and plopped down on the couch with a frustrated sigh. He took this as a sign to join her, so he did after removing his coat and tie. She sat hugging her knees with their shoulders touching, a comfortable proximity they were accustomed to.

"Well, other than the fact that you forgot to pick me up earlier," Roxas slapped his forehead at this, "Zexion wants me to finish a new piece for the gallery by the eleventh."

"So? Making art is your job, Namine."

"He wants me to make the art move." She clarified, "He wants me to, quote, take art to the next level to impress an artist from Destiny Islands visiting next week or something. It'll attract and inspire more artists, too."

"He wants you to make it move?" Roxas looked as if he had just sucked on a sour lemon, "Tough. But that's good, Namine. It'll challenge you and make you better. Not that you aren't already amazing or anything."

After a playful shove, Namine rested her head on his muscular shoulder, "But I have so much work to do... and I don't even know how to make art move."

"Hey," The sun-kissed blond adjusted their positions so that both their hands were intertwined and they were facing each other, "You're incredibly creative and talented. You'll be just fine. Besides, you've got the devilishly handsome Roxas Hikari on your side."

"Wow. Are you really trying to help me by complimenting yourself?" She asked with a chuckle.

"Maybe." He shrugged with a smile, "Why don't you start brainstorming ideas now?"

"That's a good idea." She left the couch and plopped back down five seconds later with a notepad and pen in hand, "So, what do you think I should do?"

"Whoa, whoa," Roxas raised his hands in defense, "Namine, you of all people should know that I'm not the best artist."

"You aren't that bad." She claimed. Just to contradict the statement, Roxas took the notepad and spent nearly five minutes trying to draw something. He looked very concentrated, too. When the pad was returned to Namine, she tried to conceal her laughter. Poor guy couldn't even draw stick people and colour within the lines properly, "Okay. You're pretty bad. But you can still help with the brainstorming!" That was a pity comment. It totally was. "What comes to mind when you hear the words 'art' and 'move'?"

"I don't think you want to know what comes to mind." He said with a sly smirk.

"Really? How is that even remotely sexual? You're such a guy." After hitting him with a couch pillow, Namine resumed her work, "So... what if I create a piece that has a lot of movement? People running, possibly an amusement park with fast-paced rides... those have a lot of movement, right?" When Namine looked up, Roxas was already on the computer again, still fascinated by the rolling screen. She sweatdropped. Roxas must've had the smallest attention span in the galaxy.

Then, out of the blue, he snapped, "I got it." He turned the chair around to face her, "Why don't you draw different pictures on different pieces of paper, each moving bit by bit so that when you flip all the pages, it looks like it's actually moving?"

Namine blinked twice. "It could tell a story."

"Yeah, that too."

"Roxas, that's... that's brilliant!" She leapt up in joy and lunged herself towards him to give him a hug. The force was obviously too much and caused them both to fall to the ground, Roxas' back cushioned by the leather seat. Though their faces were close, Namine didn't seem to mind, "But even though, making all those panels would take forever on canvas-sized paper..." Then with her puppy dog eyes, she cast her spell on him, "Roxas, can you help me? Please?"

"Nams, I just showed you my art skills-"

"No drawing or colouring for you. Just inking. You can follow lines, can't you?"

"Well, yeah, but-" He found himself falling deeper and deeper into those eyes, lost from reality, "All right, fine! I'll see what I can do! As long as it pays the bills." In all honesty, the two were pretty well off with good paying jobs (their two floor, modern downtown loft styled apartment did nothing to contradict this), but they still felt the need to be cautious.

"Promise?" She pressed.

"Promise. Now do you want to maybe get off? This is a rather kinky position." Wink. "Not that I'm complaining or anything."

"What? Please. You're on the bottom. Man up. This hardly makes you look good." Before he could comment, her watch beeped. Namine immediately unmounted Roxas and ran to the glass doors that led to their balcony. The sea-salt scented air of downtown Twilight Town filled her nostrils as she appreciated the perfect view of the beach at night. She and Roxas really did pick the perfect home to live in together.

"Roxas!" She hollered, "It's 11:11! Make a wish!"

He merely chuckled at her childish traditions and leaned against the platinum rails beside her, "You are such a teenager."

"Shh!" She silenced with a finger to her lips. She then clasped her eyes shut in full concentration, her hands intertwined as if she were praying.

"What are you wishing for this time?" He whispered.

"Can't tell. It won't come true." Came her usual response. Roxas rolled his eyes. She always ended up telling him in the end.

"Done." When Namine returned to reality, she was nose-to-nose with Roxas. This, in turn, caused her to squeak and topple backward. Roxas caught her of course, his calloused hand from years of guitar playing resting on her -almost- bare back. Her thin sundress easily allowed the warmth of his hand to spread throughout her whole body.

"Roxas," She mumbled with a red face as he pulled her to him, her hand on his rock-hard chest, "Don't scare me like that."

"What did you wish for?" He repeated, huskier this time while taking in her Pina Colada scent.

She looked into his determined eyes and sighed, "I wished for the moving art piece to be a success. It's due in eleven days, Roxas. On top of everything else I have to do, that's nearly impossible."

Sensing her change in mood, he pulled her head to his chest and stroked her hair, "I'll help you. Don't worry. Besides," He lightly pushed her off to show her his signature charming smile, "You know what else is in eleven days."

She giggled, "Eleven years, right?"

He confirmed by kissing her forehead, "Eleven years."

"I cannot believe you and Namine have been best friends for almost eleven years." After serving the ball perfectly into Roxas' court, Axel let out a pathetic chuckle. "Seriously dude. There's a limit to the friend zone before it becomes permanent."

"Agreed~!" Came the cheery singsong voice that could only belong to Roxas' twin brother. "And eleven years is far too long, Roxas. Get a move on."

"Tch, what do you two know about the friend zone?" The blond sucessfully hit the ball back to the corner of Axel's court, causing the redhead to miss. "You're married." He gestured his Babolat racket towards his brother then pointed it at his male best friend, "And you're... well, it's complicated with you, but you have an on and off girlfriend. You guys are no longer applicable to talk about the friend zone."

Sora spun his racket around and winked, "Oh, but we know plenty about Le Friend Zone."

Sensing that their morning workout was over and replaced with an opportunity to mock Roxas' relationship, Axel removed his sweaty headband and tossed it in his duffel bag along with all his other tennis gear. "First of all, the goal of the friend zone is to get out of it if you're interested in a girl romantically or sexually. 'Cause once it becomes permanent, it's extremely hard to undo, so you gotta make moves and time it right-"

Roxas raised his hand, "Okay, please don't go all Bro Code on me. Besides, I never said that I wanted to get out of the friend zone. I'm fine with being best friends with Namine." While the blond began packing his things, the two men laughed.

"So you're telling me that you've always seen Namine as your best friend and nothing more?" Axel asked in between wheezes.

"I didn't say that." Roxas corrected, "I said that I'm fine being best friends."

"But you'd like it better if she were something more." Pestered Sora.

His twin shrugged while opening a water bottle, "I'm not going to deny that."

Axel smacked the bottle out of his hands and stared him down, "Then why don't you man up and do something about it?"

As if it were planned, Roxas' cellphone began to ring. Just one glance at the screen caused him to groan. "It's Olette."

"Oh, that's right," Began Sora's sarcastic remark, "Your girlfriend."

"That rich kid from Sunset Hill?" When Sora nodded, Axel's teasing expression was replaced with disgust, "Hot, but a total princess. I can't believe you're dating her."

"They're not actually dating-" Sora began, but was immediately shushed by his brother who took the call. After a series of Mhm's and Okay's and 'All right's, the call ended and Roxas let out an exasperated sigh.

"She wants to have dinner tonight. Her parents are coming." He whined.

Axel stretched his arms with an eye cracked open, "Tell me again why you're dating this chick if you don't even like her? Like, does she even let you get any?" If any of the girls were around, the redhead would've been elbowed.

"We're not actually dating. We're just pretending." The blond sighed. "Our moms were close back in the day. They thought it would be cute if I dated her since I was still single on the market at the time."

"I made the smart decision and got engaged." Sora said proudly.

"That's why mom didn't pick you." Roxas mumbled.

"You know mom was kidding when she said that right?" Sora reminded.

Roxas shrugged, "I-I don't know. I just feel like I'll be disappointing her if we break up."

"But Olette has a boyfriend." His brother pointed out, "Hayner, or whatever."

"Yeah, but our parents obviously don't know that."

"Okay, I've heard enough." Axel crossed his arms, "Based on what I've just heard, I have come to conclusion that you, Roxas, are a pansy."

"What?" He squeaked, "I am not!"

"Let's sort the facts out, shall we?" The redhead then began writing on an imaginary board, "You've been best friends with Namine, a total babe, for a long time now. She's like the sweetest thing ever. You have feelings for her, but choose not to advance because you don't want to disappoint your parents by breaking up with your current 'girlfriend' Olette, who, clearly, does not give a damn about you because she has another boyfriend that is not you. The way I see it, you're just using this pretend girlfriend thing to prolong your confession to Namine because you, my best friend, are scared. Got it memorized?"

"Amen!" Sora preached.

"I am not scared." Roxas fought back in the worst tone possible.

"Wow, you are so obvious." Axel snorted.

Roxas crossed his arms and continued to deny Axel's wisdom, "What's there to be scared about?"

"What are we, in high school?" The redhead rolled his eyes, "Knowing you, you're probably scared that she won't return your feelings. You don't want eleven years to go to waste just in case she doesn't accept your feelings, right? Either that, or you don't want a repeat of the Xion incident. You're twenty-six, Roxas. An adult. Make the freaking decision that you know is right."

"Since when did you become the gay best friend?" Roxas then sent Sora a look, "And you. Aren't you supposed to be reading my mind with the twin telepathy? We're identical freaking twins. You're slacking, Sora."

"No, you're slacking, Roxas." Sora poked his brother's chest accusingly, "While you stand here too scared to take the risk of confessing, another guy could be willing to take it."

"..."

"..."

"Whatever. I gotta get ready for tonight. It's a two-hour drive to Sunset Hill and it's already-" He checked his watch, "Two thirty-five in the afternoon. So if you gentlemen don't mind," The blond gruffly grabbed his duffel bag and slung his racket over his shoulder, "I'm going to visit my girlfriend."

When he was a good ten meters away, Sora hollered at him, "I thought you had to help Namine with something for work!"

"I'll work it out!" Came the hoarse reply.

As the sound of a roaring engine and screeching tires echoed throughout the whole court, Axel whistled, "Shit, did Roxas just drive off in a Maserati?"

Sora's mouth popped, "Yup. Got it last week."

"What does he do again?"

The brunet laughed pathetically, "You are the worst best friend and brother-in-law ever. But if you must know, he, Ven, Van and I work at Caelum Industries owned by Namine's grandfather. You know, the big shot technology industry? Our families are close so we just so happened to land jobs there."

"So why aren't you racking in the cash like your brothers do?"

"Because they make new weapons for the army. I just demonstrate them." Sora grinned cheekily.

"Nice. Think he'll let me drive his car?"

"Not a chance."

"Aw, boo."

Back inside said Maserati, Roxas activated the bluetooth on his phone and called Namine by clicking a button on the steering wheel.

"Hello?" Answered her sweet, surround sound voice coming from every speaker in the car.

"Hey beautiful." He greeted with a smirk although she couldn't see him.

"Hey trollface."

He winced, "Mm, thanks."

The sound of her laughter filled the entire car, "Is there a reason you called?"

"Yeah, uh..." He ran a hand through his unruly spikes, keeping one hand on the wheel, "Nams, Olette called."

He could tell that her mood drastically dropped from happy to downright disappointed when she said "Oh."

"Yeah, her parents are coming over and she wants me there, so I can't help you with your art today. I'm really sorry."

"I-it's fine. I understand. I'll just have Kairi drive me home early."

"Thanks, Namine. I should be home around midnight. Love you."

"Love you, too, Rox. Bye."

Call ended.

When Namine imagined herself saying goodbye to Roxas like that, she expected her to be his girlfriend; not the best friend giving him away to his current skunkbag of a girlfriend.

"Eleven years, huh?" Kairi's expression read only one thing when she said that: Annoyed. As a volunteer led her to the reclinable hospital bed, the redhead continued to rant, "That's unbelievable. I mean, you two are practically a couple without the benefits. You live together, go everywhere together, show public displays of affection save kissing together... I bet you even sleep together!"

"Kairi!" Namine scolded when the volunteer looked at them oddly and scurried away.

"Oh calm your balls. I didn't mean it like that." Kairi giggled, "Besides, there's no need to get all concious in here. Look at the doctor." At this, a young doctor with bright blue stylish hair greeted Namine with a smile.

"Aqua!" Namine recognized their mutual high school friend almost immediately when she walked in.

"Hey Namine." She chuckled before jotting something down on her board, "You and Kairi look great."

While Kairi flipped her hair and thanked Aqua, Namine went with the modest approach and stammered a simple, "Y-you too!"

"So who are we talking about?" She teased, "Namine's boyfriend?"

Kairi laughed and slapped her leg, "You mean Roxas?"

"Roxas? High school Roxas?" The doctor raised a brow, "Heartbreak Hikari Roxas?"

Heartbreak Hikari.

Roxas' nickname in high school. He practically broke every girl's heart in Twilight Academy either because he personally told them that he wasn't interested or because they thought he was dating Namine. Even then the two seemed like a couple. They even won 'most likely to be married' in their high school reunion a few months ago.

"I thought we dropped that title first year university." The blonde mumbled.

"Doesn't stop him from living up to it." This comment of Kairi's was left unnoticed by Namine.

Sensing that the conversation was getting personal, Aqua left the room and left the two best friends in silence, "All right, I just need to get something real quick you two. I'll be right back."

"Mhm." After Kairi nodded, she faced Namine with a smile, "So where were we? Oh yes. You and Roxas sleeping toge-"

"We have our own rooms." The blonde reminded sternly, leaning against a counter.

"But you choose to use his, don't you? I hear it's less squeaky." Kairi teased. When Namine stood up to leave the room, Kairi called her back, "I was kidding, Namine! Stay, stay. Please."

"I shouldn't even be here, Kairi." Namine hugged herself conciously before sitting on the stool next to Kairi's bed. "Shouldn't Sora be with you? He is your husband, after all-"

"Oh don't worry about it Namine. You're here because I wanted you to be here." The redhead reassured with a smile that lasted a lot shorter than expected, "Now enough with the heavy. Back to you and Roxas. How are things with him lately?"

The petite girl sighed, "On top of the heavy workload I have now, Zexion added an extruciatingly long piece due for the gallery in eleven days, so Roxas promised to help me, but he can't today since Olette wants him over for dinner."

"Wait, before I start bitching about that chick, let me just get things straight." Kairi raised a hand and asked with a serious expression, "Roxas is helping you with art? You are aware that the boy is only capable of drawing male genitals, right? I'm talking two circles and an oval, Nams. He can't even draw stick people."

She let out a laugh, "Oh, I know. Don't worry, I gave him an easy job."

"Well hun, I think it's sweet that he's helping you and all, but do you think he'll commit this time?"

Although she fully knew what Kairi meant, she asked anyway. "What do you mean?"

"Well," The redhead crossed her arms; the two were so engaged in their conversation that they hadn't noticed Aqua's presence in the room, "Ever since he started 'dating' that Olette girl two years ago, he's been drifting further and further away from you. Exhibit A: The phone call."

"Kairi, I do agree that we haven't been the closest as of late, but he wouldn't let Olette come between us. Besides, he's busy with work, too."

Her best friend's limp arms fell to her sides, "How do you live like this? You deserve so much more than to be best friends with him!"

"You're still best friends?" Came Aqua's bewildered reaction from the corner of the room. When the two women looked at her, obviously surprised at her sudden presence, she waved off-handidly with a pack of jelly-like liquid in hand, "Sorry, sorry. Carry on."

"See? Even Aqua thinks you should hook up already!" Kairi's unneeded hand gestures then died down to an exasperated sigh, "When will he discover what you really wish for at 11:11?"

"I..." Namine ran her hands through her hair, "I don't know."

"Okay ladies." After putting on a pair of gloves, Aqua stepped on a pedal that reclined Kairi's bed and opened the packet of jelly-like liquid, "We'll be starting now. I'm warning you Kairi, this could get really cold." The redhead tried to prepare herself like many times before but still shivered nonetheless.

The more Aqua continued with the procedure of the ultrasound, the more awkward Namine felt. She and Kairi were the same age and yet, the redhead was already married and pregnant with her first child. She and Roxas were still best friends. If Kairi was sure that Roxas felt the same way (and when Kairi was sure about something, she was always right), then why were they still where they were 11 years ago? If he wanted their friendship to be something more, he would've made it happen by now. Maybe he didn't feel the same way. Maybe he was actually serious about Olette.

The thought made her heart pound loud and quick until she realized that the fast heartbeat was actually coming from a device beside Aqua and Kairi. On the monitor was Kairi's baby or, if her eyes weren't deceiving her, babies. That heartbeat was far too fast for one child, and she was pretty sure that a healthy baby didn't have two hearts.

"Is something wrong?" The soon-to-be mother asked when Namine and Aqua gasped.

"Oh my gosh," Aqua squealed, "Congratulations Kairi, you're having twins!"

"I am?" For proof, the redhead checked the screen. Although she could barely make them out, she squealed anyway with teary eyes, "Oh my gosh, I am! You hear that Nams? I'm having two babies!"

"I'm so happy for you!" The blonde gave her best friend a quick squeeze before feeling guilty again. Now she really felt out of place. Sora should've been the first person to find out about his twins, not her.

"Aww, they're going to be just like Sora and Roxas." Kairi had a dreamy look on her face before asking Namine to dial Sora's number. As she selected his name on her contact list, Namine spent her time thinking if she and Roxas would ever get to where Sora and Kairi were as she waited for the brunet to answer.

"Namine, I'm ho-!" Roxas immediately placed a hand over his mouth just in case she was asleep. Quickly but quietly, Roxas pulled his keys from the lock and shut the door. After he hung his coat in the closet, he took a glance at the vintage clock and managed to make out 2:32 in the morning.

Yeesh. So he was a lot later than he thought.

He made his way across their house in the dark and noticed how eerily silent it was. Now he knew for sure that Namine was asleep since the artist was completely incapable of working without music. As he walked up the spiral staircase, he couldn't help but admire the appearance of their apartment. They could've easily afforded a house, but both were too lazy to shovel or rake during colder seasons, so they ended up in their cosy loft/ apartment. The walls were either made of brick or painted creamy beige and were matched with the most efficient appliances and modern furniture munny could buy. Namine, of course, designed it all. Roxas really had no clue as to why the girl aspired for visual art when she had a knack for interior design.

The second floor was no different except for the various rooms (bedrooms, bathrooms etc.) and Namine's art studio. Roxas' room was large enough to sleep and work in, so he didn't need his own workspace. He did, however, have a bullet/soundproof room for to test out his newest weapon models. But Namine's workspace was much nicer than his. So Roxas went with his best bet and checked the studio first, expecting the lights to be closed and the supplies to be all cleaned up and neat.

But he was completely off.

Not only were all the pinlights on, but there were canvas-sized papers, paints, pencils and pastels scattered all over the hardwood floor. Namine was fast asleep against her enormous wooden art desk covered with pencils, erasers and empty Chinese takeout boxes while managing to keep balance on her rolly chair. The instant he laid eyes on her, his mood shot up immensely. For the whole evening, he had to pretend to be Olette's boyfriend. He had to be someone else. With Namine, he could be his true self. He was comfortable. If anything, Namine should have been his girlfriend. Maybe Axel was right; was he really just using Olette as an excuse?

The pieces she had already finished looked amazing, so Roxas made sure he didn't step on anything as he skillfully skipped his way to the sleeping beauty.

"Well aren't you adorable." He marvelled at how peaceful she looked before taking a sketching pencil out of her right hand and lifting her in his arms. Before he did this, he threw the empty food boxes out and made sure to dodge all the artwork and turn off the lights on his way out.

Too lazy and tired to take her all the way to her room, which was a whopping five meters away at the end of the hall, Roxas decided to take her to his room, which was right across the studio. He gently lay her on his king-sized bed before heading to his own bathroom to change, brush his teeth and whatnot. When he finished, he still felt drowsy, and he surely didn't have the energy to carry Namine all the way to her room regardless of how light she was. He lazily fell into bed beside her, using the last of his will power to tuck her in. Thank goodness she was already in her PJ's. That saved the sun-kissed blond from a lot of awkwardness, even if he had seen her half-naked many times before in a bikini.

"Goodnight, Namine." He whispered, "I'm sorry about today." She merely groaned and made herself more comfortable.

After wrapping his strong arms around the fragile girl's waist, he let sleep overtake him as her thin arms unconciously wrapped around him as well.

Morning Nene,

I got called in for work today. They personally need me to demonstrate the new keyblade model with Ven and Sora at Radiant Garden. I'm really sorry I can't help you with your art again. I saw what you started yesterday, though. It looks amazing. My best friend is so talented :) Oh and I cooked breakfast for you. It's on the island in the kitchen- just heat it up in the microwave. I should be back in three days. Love you.

- Roxas

PS. you look real cute with your hair all jacked up in the morning ;)

Namine crumpled the piece of paper she found laying next to her in Roxas' bed the next morning. Not only was the calligraphy messy, but the message itself was quite disappointing. That was four days worth of work that Roxas had already fallen behind on. She would be cutting it real close if she did it all by herself at this point.

So with a heavy sigh, Namine got out of Roxas' bed that smelt just like his heavenly scent, made it and got ready for the day in her room. It was only Sunday, so she had the whole day to work on the moving piece before returning to the gallery for the remainder of the week for her other pieces.

When Namine was halfway down the stairs dressed in one of Roxas' old shirts and her own shorts covered in an apron for the messy art supplies she'd be using later, the phone begn to ring. In the middle of the jingle, a monotone male voice began to say "Hikari, Sora" every five seconds. With a snap of her fingers, the call was answered.

"Hello?" Namine greeted as she continued to walk down the stairs.

The sound of her female best friend's chipper voice echoed throughout the empty apartment, "Hey Namine!"

"Morning, Kairi." She answered groggily as she made a beeline towards the kitchen, "What's the plan for you today?"

"Well, since the boys are out of town, I was thinking that you and I could have a girl's day in! You know, since you have work to do and all. Maybe I could mosy on over there and keep you company! I could help with your art, too, since Roxas is gone."

After Namine spotted the plate of eggs, bacon and breakfast homefries on the island with transparent sealing, she immediately reacted to her offer, "Oh Kairi, you don't have to do that-"

"Nam, please. I know you're in desperate need for some help right now. Plus Sora left me with the beemer for three days and I absolutely must drive it while I have the chance. You know how protective he gets over it. I'll be there in twenty, okay?"

"Uh, s-sure. See ya."

"See ya!"

The instant the call ended, Namine removed the transparent sealing and popped the plate into the microwave while pouring herself some orange juice. Even if Kairi was coming to help, she still felt a tad worried about her work. Kairi could only help for a day since she had her own work to tend to the next day. She really wished Roxas was there to help. She didn't want to feel sad, but she couldn't help but feel a tinge of disappointment. The artist was distracted from her thoughts when the microwave beeped and told her that her food was ready. She took the plate out, placed it back on the island and stuffed a forkful of eggs into her mouth and grinned.

At least Roxas made good eggs.

Three days had passed and Roxas was back as promised. Problem was, the forces at Radiant Garden absolutely loved the new keyblade model. One on hand, it was good in the sense that it meant tons of cash, but it was bad in the sense that Roxas was working nonstop to make more. It would take him at least three days to finish up the amount Radiant Garden wanted with the help of his older brothers at work. That was already a week worth of work Roxas missed out on.

11:12PM

Namine sighed heavily as she leaned against the glass wall of her studio at the art gallery. She could practically feel the cold November air radiating from the fogging glass. She had just finished making her daily wish and was waiting for Roxas to pick her up. He was released at around 8:00pm (what he couldn't finish at work he finished at home) and usually picked her up on his way home. But today, he was late. For the billionth time in two years.

"Namine?" Called a voice from behind. Pence and Demyx, both artists that worked for the studio (though Pence was more of a photographer and Demyx a musician), stood at the doorway with worried expressions.

"You're still here?" Demyx pouted, "Is Roxas awfully late again?"

She bit her lip, "Um, yeah..."

"Want a ride home?" Pence offered for the hundredth time, taunting her by spinning his car keys around his index finger. "I'm driving Dem anyway."

"No, it's all right. Thanks though, Pence." She bowed in gratitude as he shrugged and continued down the sleek white halls of the gallery with Demyx in tow.

The delicate blonde hugged herself while waiting for a silver Maserati to pull in at the parking lot that she had a perfect view of as well as Twilight Town's famous clock tower from afar. Deciding that he wasn't going to show and that she would have to bus home, Namine gathered her things and closed the lights of her studio on the way out. Her heels clacked against the hardwood floor and echoed throughout the entire gallery as she walked towards the exit. But before she could even reach the stairs, she stopped at a certain room at the end of the second floor hallway. Before she was promoted last year, that room was her old studio. Realizing that she hadn't been there in awhile, she opened the glass doors and walked inside the small but neat studio. It would soon belong to an artist from Destiny Islands coming sometime next week, but until then, it still belonged to little Namine.

She couldn't help but lean her head against the cold glass wall closest to the parking lot and remember the days when she and Roxas were super close. When he was always there to help without fail. When their old Lexus LFA would show up at 8:15pm on the dot.

Namine sighed as memories of a moment two years ago overtook her. It took place in the very room she was in at that moment and was the closest she had ever felt with Roxas.

Two years ago

A very heartbroken Namine sat on a stool with her face buried in her hands, black tears from her mascara running down her cheeks. She recently found out that a close family member of hers, Cloud Strife, her cousin, was killed in action during a SOLDIER mission. Cloud was somewhat like an older brother to her and wasn't the most talkative guy, but they still got along fine. Roxas barely saw him, but even Roxas liked Cloud and vice versa.

And Cloud was only twenty-six. Namine was starting to think that life was unfair. Cloud deserved more. Cloud was born for greater things. Cloud's life was cut far too short.

The sound of fast approaching footsteps distracted her from the sounds of her own pathetic sobs. She looked up only to find Roxas panting on the other side of the glass walls, still dressed in his formal business wear minus the coat and tie. He unbuttoned the first few buttons of his white dress shirt to expose some muscle but was covered by the strap of his black messenger bag still strapped across his chest. Her heart skipped a beat at the very sight of him. She had only informed him of the situation via text message ten minutes ago and yet, there he was, already breathless on the other side of her door.

He opened the door without permission and rushed in, kneeling so that he could level with his best friend. Without any words, he intertwined their hands and squeezed hers tight, not bothering to ask if she was okay because he already knew she wasn't.

"Wh...Wh..." She choked, "You should b-be at work."

He shook his head, "You're my top priority right now. Now come on," He stood up with a smile, "Let's go."

Her blue orbs widened, "Wh-what? I c-can't just leave i-in the middle of-"

"I already told Zexion that you needed a personal day. Now come on!"

"But look at me!" She gestured to herself pathetically. Her fitting white dress shirt, black slacks and brown belt looked fine, but her face told an entirely different story. Roxas merely took a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped her face gently, ridding her fair complexion of any black marks.

"Didn't go with the waterproof mascara I see." He teased, trying to brighten up the mood. He knew it worked when she let out a sad chuckle. When he finished, he tossed the fabric aside and cupped her face in his warm hands, "Beautiful. Now let's go!"

Weaker than ever, Namine just allowed him to drag her out of the gallery and into their car where she questioned where he was taking them. He merely smirked at her as he twisted the keys into the ignition, "You'll see when we get there."

She shrugged and allowed him to do whatever. After all, he ditched Caelum Industries just to be with her.

The ride there filled with Namine's sniffles and silence from Roxas. At least she wasn't bawling like in the gallery. Just Roxas' presence alone was already starting to make her feel better.

"Roxas, where are we going?" She asked again, sounding as if she had a cold. The sun was already setting, but then again, Twilight Town was known for being in a sunset-like state for most of the day.

"I said you'll see." Roxas responded, his eyes fixated on the road. Five minutes passed until Roxas parked the car and Namine couldn't believe where he had taken her.

"Nautilus? Are you kidding me Roxas?" Namine laughed. Nautilus was a well-known indoor amusement park located inside Twilight Town's main mall. The entire park could practically be seen through the glass panels. It had a cute theme to it and was filled with childish rides, prizes and whatnot. "This place is for little kids." At least it wasn't the bar that Roxas and the boys usually ran to to drown their sorrows.

"Hey, if it makes kids happy, then what difference do we make?" The sun-kissed blond grinned before throwing an arm over his best friend's shoulder and leading her inside. Nautilus looked even more enchanting on the inside with the moogle balloons, lanterns and whatnot. Namine had no idea that so much plantlife (given it was fake), rides, activities and booths could actually fit in a mall. But since it was a weekday, the amusement park wasn't all too busy, but there were still children and parents running amuck.

"Two, please." Roxas asked the young man behind the counter.

When he handed the blond the two tickets, he looked at the best friends oddly, "How old are you two?"

Roxas snatched the two strips of paper and scowled at the boy, "Does it matter?" The teen put his hands up in surrender as Roxas tended back to his broken bestie.

"Hey, cheer up." He demanded while lifting her chin to look at his toothy smile. After straightening her composure, she meekly sniffled one for time before forcing a smile. He then bowed before her in respect while gesturing an arm towards the entrance, "After you, your majesty."

"Why thank you laddie!" Namine attempted in a British accent.

Roxas slapped his forehead with a laugh, "You are aware that what you just said was from a completely different dialect."

"Whatever. You enjoyed it. Now are we just going to stand here while I cry?"

Roxas frowned and took her hand, "Of course not."

The sun-kissed blond then dragged her on the kiddiest rides possible including ones that they could barely fit in, like the spinning teacup ride. Namine was a little hesitant and depressed at first, but as time passed, her heart slowly began to heal. Sure people stared at them quite oddly, but she began to care less ride after ride. Regardless of how embarassed and broken she was, Namine had to admit that her shrieks of laughter meant that she was having fun. Bless Roxas and his idea of taking her here. And bless him for refusing to bring up "he who shall not be named".

"Pretty girlfriend you got there." While Namine was in the middle of winning herself a balloon, a young woman behind a funnel cake booth smiled, "You make a cute couple." It was at this time that Roxas caught the young woman eyeing his expensive watch. She was clearly making silent judgements about him.

Roxas laughed nervously as he leaned against the counter, "Thanks, but... she's not my girlfriend."

"Ooh~." The woman (she must've been around his age, if not younger) seductively hoisted herself up on the counter so that Roxas got a better view of her chest, "What a shame." Something about her voice told him that it wasn't a shame to her at all. He was right the instant she began tracing his arm with her index finger, "Say, why don't you ditch blondie over there and we go out for a drink handsome?"

"I, uh-"

"Roxas~." Namine cooed, hugging his arm, "Honey, can we go on the ferris wheel now?" The blonde made sure that the woman caught a glance at the ring on her ring finger as she snuggled into Roxas more.

He caught her drift and kissed her cheek with a smirk, "Sure."

"I thought she wasn't your girlfriend." The chick hissed.

"She isn't." Roxas lifted Namine's left hand and winked, "She's my fiancee." They took the woman's huffing as a sign to leave, so they did. When they were out of earshot, Namine released Roxas and the two doubled over in laughter.

"Was that the ring Sora and Kairi gave you for your birthday?" Roxas asked in between wheezes.

"Yeah but she didn't need to know that." She responded with equal wheezes. After living in the moment, the two resumed their stroll around the park. The two soon found themselves on a ledge on the second floor, hovering over the side that contained shops from the mall Nautilus was connected to. Civilians of Twilight Town practically modelled across the floor dressed in the latest fashions and welcoming smiles.

"Watch this." From his messenger bag, Roxas pulled out a notepad and wrote "Hey, call me ;D" followed by a number. Without warning, he crumpled it and tossed it down below.

"R-Roxas!" Gasped Namine, "What are you doing?"

"Picking up girls." He winked.

"B-but that wasn't even your number!"

"Did I say I was picking up girls for myself?"

"Then who's number did you write?" Exclaimed Namine.

Roxas chuckled, "Axel's."

The two blondes looked down below and found that Roxas' paper ball had fallen on a girl with two blonde antennas sticking out of her hair. After reading the note, the blonde's friends looked up, waved and giggled as Roxas sent them a charming smile and wave. The antenna girl, on the other hand, flipped him off and walked away with the paper still in hand.

"Ooh. Feisty." Roxas crossed his arms, "I think Axel's gonna like her."

Namine patted his chest with a laugh, "That is, if she calls him and finds out it isn't you."

"Oh, she will. Trust." Roxas' eyes then twindled onto the colourful ferris wheel back at the park. It was so large that it stretched across all three floors of the mall. A smile crept onto his face as he caught Namine looking at it, too. But before he could make a move, the small girl suddenly embraced him so hard that he was almost knocked backwards. He didn't hesitate to hug her back with the same force.

"Thank you, Roxas." Since her face was buried in his shirt, it came out muffled.

"Y-you're welcome." He replied securely, "I'll always be here to help and take care of you, Nams. You can be sure of that."

She looked him in the eyes and smiled like a child who had just received a lollipop. Then as if he was under some spell, Roxas found himself inching closer to her face to press their soft lips together.

His intoxicating scent drove her mad as he got closer and closer. Namine felt paralyzed. What was about to happen was going to make her wish come true. With one action, their relationship could advance...

Maybe life wasn't as unfair as she thought?

Their lips had just touched when Roxas received a text. At this, the blondes were both left with disappointment.

With a sigh, Roxas pulled away and apologized without even reading the text, "Namine, I-"

"I-it's fine..." She stammered to try and reduce the awkwardness, "B-but I think we've had enough for one day... let's j-just go home..."

"I, uh..." Namine couldn't tell that her request stung him a bit, "Sure. Let's go home." He offered her his arm with a friendly smile, "Shall we?"

She linked their arms together, at least thankful to have him by her side, "We shall."

Present Day

11:32PM

A honk distracted Namine from her flashback. She could faintly make out a black truck parked at the entrance of the gallery with a familiar redhead leaning against the passenger seat, bobbing his head to the beat of heavy metal music blasting from the speakers. Namine soon found herself standing before him with a crooked smile on her face.

"Don't give up on him." Begged Axel while stepping aside to let Namine in the truck. Without a word, she got into the passenger seat and thanked him for driving her home.

When Namine arrived at the door of her loft, she jammed the keys into the lock, twisted it, and walked inside gruffly. She wasn't necessarily angry, but she wasn't extremely happy either. After tossing her jacket into the closet, she collapsed onto the bright red couch in the living room. It wasn't until twenty minutes later that she heard keys jingling on the other side of the door. The door opened and Roxas walked inside with his shoulders slumped and heavy bags under his eyes, completely unaware of Namine's presence until he looked up.

He inhaled sharply when he saw her, "I'm-"

"It's okay." She said weakly. Quickly but tiredly, he joined her on the couch and pulled her into a tight hug. She was supposed to feel warm and safe in his arms, but instead, she felt colder than ever.

"He's taking advantage of you."

"Kairi-"

"Please don't defend him. He's taking advantage of you." The redhead confirmed sternly while sipping on her strawberry-banana smoothie. Thinking that they deserved a break, the two girls met up for brunch at a nearby restaurant in town. They were given a seat outside, so the two enjoyed the warm sun against their faces. November in Twilight Town was like a spring day. Warm, but sometimes windy.

"Namine, honey, you have to stop being so nice." Kairi advised while pointing at the artist with a fork, "You're letting him walk all over you. He thinks that he can just keep blowing off work or spending time with you nowadays because you're not doing anything about it. It's been a week, Nams. The piece is due in four days and he hasn't done shit about it. You have to stand up for yourself and show him what he's missing out on!"

"Maybe he just doesn't want to be with me anymore. Maybe he likes Olette more." Namine mumbled, poking at her pasta. Her face was completely drained of all colour and the bags under her eyes were more noticable than ever. "And maybe he's too busy with work."

Kairi dropped her fork and looked at her as if she had two heads, "Girl please. We both know none of that is true. If Sora can find time to be with me even for just a bit, then I'm sure Roxas can. He's just being his usual difficult self. I just don't know how you've managed to tolerate it for all these years. I don't care if he's got a fakeass girlfriend that lives three hours away. I don't care if he's got a crapload of work. That boy just needs to MAN UP."

Namine blinked twice. Kairi's pregnant hormones were really starting to kick in. Her usual self would've said the same thing but in a much calmer manner. "Uh, Kai-"

"Namine," She whispered in a sweeter tone, "You love and respect this boy so much that you're losing respect for yourself. Please just stand up to him. Enough is enough. You have to accept that."

"What if I lose him?"

"Then he'll come find you. You have, after all, been friends for eleven years."

Beep beep!

Namine glanced at her watch. When she looked up, Kairi was already waiting for her to make a wish. When she was finished, her best friend was smiling deviously.

"What?" The frightened platinum-haired girl asked.

"Nothing," Kairi shook her head, "Just nothing."

"Roxas! Hey, over here!"

The successful young blond found his older brother obnoxiously flailing his arms around in the middle of the restaurant, trying to catch his attention. When he arrived, he was faced with his brothers and some of his closest friends: Kairi, Axel, Xion, Selphie and Tidus for their annual dinner. Tonight was also supposed to be a special dinner since one of Sora and Kairi's old friends from Destiny Islands was moving in. But Namine wasn't able to make it, claiming she was too busy with her moving art piece.

"Hey baby bro!" Ventus proceeded in giving him a noogie after the obnoxious waving.

"Hey Ven." When Roxas took a stool in the middle of the row, he noticed that Sora was already scarfing down food like there was no tomorrow beside him. He scowled, "Last time I checked, Kairi was the pregnant one, not you."

"Ha ha." Although his mouth was full, it was coated his sarcasm, "Funny. Who's married again?"

"Touche."

"Wait, you're pregnant?" Came Axel's startled voice from behind the teppayanki table; the fiery redhead actually worked there as a chef, "I just thought you were fat."

Kairi mimicked her older brother in a deep voice, "I just thought you were fat." Axel continued to do the same while skillfully cooking vegetables and such until Kairi realized something in the middle of the bickering.

"Wait, what are you doing here?" Kairi pointed an accusing finger at Roxas, "You douche! Aren't you supposed to be helping Namine with her project? I heard that when she first asked you for help, you were too preoccupied with some 'do a barrel roll' Google crap-"

"No way, does it actually do that?" Ven asked.

"Yes, dude-" Roxas was interrupted by Kairi's smack to the head.

"Why aren't you with her?"

"I, uh..." Roxas rubbed his temples, "Kairi, I've been working all week and just got out of work. I honestly just needed a break."

"So you decide to ditch your best friend and leave her alone in the house? You motherfucking emperor of China-"

"Honey, honey, calm the pregnant rages, please." Sora asked softly.

"What's the haps with you and Namine?" Selphie suddenly asked, wiggling her brows.

"Yeah, isn't your friendaversary on the eleventh?" Tidus asked.

Vanitas snickered, "You're still best friends? You should just bang the girl and get over it." After being elbowed by Ventus and Roxas, Vanitas growled, "Ow! Hey, come on, you have to admit that she's hot. But Roxas, man, get out of the damn friend zone."

"Not this again..." Roxas blushed and turned away, " And don't talk about her like that."

"Vanitas' unneeded comments aside, I agree with Kairi." Ventus started, "Should you really be here Roxas? You should be helping her. You obviously have strong feelings for the girl. It's not like she's someone that you marry and divorce after a couple of months. This girl is like... she's like..."

"She's a freaking keeper." Vanitas finished.

"But what if she doesn't feel the same way?" Roxas groaned, "She doesn't exactly wish for me to make a move or anything. She's always wishing for other things that have nothing to do with me."

"Oh my gosh. Listen here Roxas," Kairi snapped, "I hate to break it to ya, but Namine's been doing a little lying, just like you have with Olette. Of course she's not going to tell you what she really wishes for. Girls aren't exactly direct and open with their actual feelings, y'know! Who's to say she doesn't wish for you to make a move? Just stop being such a wuss and get a freaking move on. You've kept her waiting for so long that I'm surprised that she still has the patience to wait for you. You honestly can't tell me that you think she only likes you as a best friend after all these years. You're comfortable together. You live together. You freaking do everything together. Well, at least you used to. My goodness. You guys can be so returded sometimes."

"I think she's just trying to get you to leave." Tidus snickered.

"And tell her how you feel." Everyone turned to the owner of the soft voice. It was Xion; Roxas' ex-girlfriend. Somehow, someway, they still ended up being really good friends.

"Xion..."

"Roxas please." Xion flicked her wrist, "Let's not make this dramatic. Everyone agrees that you should go help her and tell her how you feel. You never know when your time will run out."

"But-"

As if it were planned, a new member filled the last stool on the edge of the teppayanki table. He was tall, extremely fit, dressed well and, although pale, extremely good looking with aquamarine eyes that could render anyone speechless. While everyone else looked confused, Sora and Kairi recognized the young man in a heartbeat.

"Riku!" Sora squealed delightfully, offering the long-haired man a fist bump.

Kairi went for the casual hug and introduced him to their friends, "Guys, this is Riku Kenbishi. He's a childhood friend of ours from Destiny Islands. He's going to be living in Twilight Town from now on. He's quite the talented artist, just like someone we know." Kairi narrowed her eyes at Roxas at the last statement before putting on a smile again, "And Riku, I'm sure you remember Sora's brothers; Roxas, Ventus and Vanitas. That's Axel, Xion, Selphie and Tidus."

"Nice to meet all of you." Riku greeted with a deep voice and a smile. They, in turn, welcomed him to Twilight Town. Selphie seemed impressed with Riku's appearance with the way she was twirling her hair around her finger and all.

"Well don't you look awfully chipper for someone whose had a thirteen hour flight." Sora slapped the albino-haired boy across the back, "Did something happen already?"

"As a matter of fact, yes." Riku grinned madly.

"Oh I know that look." Kairi placed her hands on her hips, "Someone already has a date, don't they?"

"Wheels." Tidus high-fived the newcomer.

"What's she like? What's her name?" At first he was eager but then Sora began to scratch the back of his head, "Or... his name... if that's how you roll..."

Riku chuckled, "She is very attractive, if I do say so myself. Very talented, too."

Roxas frowned; there was just something about this guy that he already didn't like. He was too perfect. Very well-mannered. Professional. Cool. Hot (no homo).

"So who is she? We might know her." Kairi elbowed him teasingly.

"Her name's Namine. Namine Caelum."

Is it awesome that I finished this chapter right on 11:11PM? I think it is!

I don't think I'll be able to post the second chapter by today (it is still 11/11/11 for most of you out there, right? :S), but if anything, it will be up soon as well as Teenage Wasteland's 31st chapter. I just wanted to take a little break from the teen craziness and make the most out of this rare event :) But I hope you guys are enjoying this story so far! I'm quite okay with the way most of it turned out. Been working on it for awhile o.e I'm sorry for any grammar errors and reviews would be well appreciated :)

Btw, the barrel roll thing. It's real.

xoKyorii