a/n: Thank you to my wonderful reviewers Flying By Wire, Guest, Getsuga TENSHOU 15, A Nobody's Fate, Ka-tay's mind, Wash in with WAVES, Wander-bird, ThePurpleKittyQuXXn, vanitasu, Just A Fan & Innocent Lives for reviewing the last chapter.

Guys, I've got to save up for a PS4 now, which will be monumentally hard with my spending habits.

propts to: The Aquarium

& bgm: Anything Could Happen - Ellie Goulding

Drown

It was ten o'clock in the morning. Naminé was enjoying a healthy bowl of Coco Pops, legs crossed on the sofa watching an anime named No. 6 on her laptop. This was a very normal sight for anyone that knew her personally. She'd spent most of her spare time in the two years she was away in the exact same position, shredding her way through seasons of anime and dramas when she wasn't studying or exercising.

Roxas was reading The Catcher in the Rye on the couch next to her, occasionally looking up whenever the noise escalated on Naminé's screen. It was kind of strange draping over each other when they'd only really become acquainted a few days ago, but she thought the sooner they settled into a rhythm with each other, the better their relationship would be.

He drawled, "Alright, so what's the anime about?"

"Killer bees and yaoi."

"Is that some kind of weird new kink?" he stretched his neck, which was leaning against her thigh to see the screen.

"No, you idiot. There are killer bees. And there is yaoi. There's a pathetic amount of yaoi, but it's more than what you see anime with homosexual undertones. There are also robotic rats, a cute and somewhat dim-witted protagonist, Shakespeare and a wall separating the metropolis from the outcast society."

"That sounds like the makings of a disaster," he laughed.

"Fine, I'll switch," Naminé moaned, closing the tab and opening another.

"What are you watching?"

"Shingeki no Kyojin."

She liked the serene atmosphere. Sunlight was streaming in through the window, and there wasn't anything in the world they had to worry about. They were waiting on a party that was going to signal the start of the school year. She was going to make memories she would never forget.

Today was a good day.

"The bondage anime?"

"Fuck you."

Roxas started laughing ridiculously, the space between them bubbling with warmth as he turned on his side and adjusted his head so it pillowed on her thigh. She was surprised when she felt the scratchiness of five o'clock shadow. For some reason, the thought overwhelmed her to the point where she had to pause her movements. Roxas swivelled his neck so that she could see the outline of his eye over his cheekbones, but all she could think about was Roxas' stubble.

"Sorry," she muttered in embarrassment, before playing the video.

Roxas having five o'clock shadow. The thought itself is obscene. After all, she was still trying to differentiate between her friends as seventeen to eighteen-year-olds, and middle schoolers that laughed at the thought of blowing condoms up and hanging them from a tree to frighten teachers.

How had they changed, while she was gone? How had they all grown up together?

"I don't get it, why do you like this anime?"

"Are you kidding?" This was of course, a rhetorical question. "The concept is brilliant! It's like a horror twist on Jack and the Beanstalk. Humans are stuck in an itty-bitty enclosure surrounded by man-eating titans. The only way to fight them off is to swing around like Spider-Man and cut off their necks with gloriously long swords."

"Do you have an OTP?"

"YES!" she answered, all too enthusiastically. "Between the main protagonist and the watchdog soldier who's supposed to keep his titan-self under control."

She couldn't see, but she was sure Roxas raised an eyebrow. He was grinning, she could tell from the small movement she felt against her thigh. "What's so appealing about them?"

"Rivaille and Eren? Just the fact that they're both soldiers who fight for the sake of humanity. And at absolutely any sign of affection Eren shows Rivaille, who is afraid of human contact, will brutally beat him down. Imagine the hate sex, Roxas."

"Nam-"

"Shh!" she hush-whispered, covering his mouth with her hand. "Just imagine it."

"Phackin' he-" he said, through the barrier of her fingers.

"Imagine it, dammit!"

Roxas' attempt at freedom rocked her Coco Pops, and she let out a yelp as she prevented a brown stain on their beautiful green sofa. They burst into laughter that made the laptop shiver. While she was trying to control her giggles, Roxas' phone started chiming The Pretty Reckless' version of Seven Nation Army, and he opened up a FaceTime chat with Olette.

"Hey Olette," he said, still trying to hold back laughs as he settled back into his position. Naminé slid the volume down as she focused on the brunet's face. Behind Olette was a plain brick wall which looked oddly familiar. "What's up?"

"Where's Naminé?"

Roxas adjusted the phone so that Naminé could fit into the screen. There was a high pitched scream in Olette's background and Kairi hopped into the frame pointing at the camera.

"You guys are so adorable together!"

That caught Roxas' attention. He immediately righted and adjusted himself, leaning on her a little bit, keeping her within the camera's field of vision. Her skin tingled where he pressed his muscled arm to her own, but she tried to ignore it as she smiled into the camera, nervously tapping her spoon against her bowl of chocolate milk.

"What did you guys need?" Naminé asked them, leaning her head on Roxas' shoulder.

"A little birdie told me you don't have a proper wardrobe," Kairi said, wagging her finger at Naminé. "A beautiful girl needs fashionable clothes."

"I have a few clothes," Naminé stated slowly. "Presents from my mom."

"That's not nearly acceptable!" Kairi and Olette said together.

"Anyway, we're in front of your building, so you have to let us in."

Naminé put down her bowl of cereal and went to the video phone, the screen flickering to see both Kairi and Olette staring back at her. She still couldn't get over how awesome it was to be able to be in charge of her door. She hadn't had this level of freedom back at her mansion. She buzzed them in and waited for them to arrive at the door. When they flung open the door, they immediately went to hug Naminé, crushing her in their embrace. They hadn't seen each other in person for a year almost, and even then, they hadn't known it was her.

"Holy crap, you became really hot, Naminé," Kairi complimented her.

"Aww. I love you too, Kairi!" Naminé gushed.

"Hello Roxas," Olette greeted politely. Roxas waved from his spot on the couch, apparently too engrossed in the anime to pay the girls any higher greeting. Naminé smiled smugly before giving Olette and Kairi the grand tour. And by grand tour, she meant pointing to the sections of her apartment and saying what they were (ie. "Staircase. Kitchen. Lounge room. Library.")

"This place is so beautiful!"

"Yeah," Olette agreed.

"You're so lucky," Kairi smiled, and it really shone. It had been a while since Naminé had been able to bask in the red head's light personality, or Olette's kindness. She was just beginning to get comfortable around them. "Alright, so it's time to show us this horrid wardrobe of yours."

Naminé shrugged and led them upstairs. They both gasped when they discovered the sparse nature of the blond's clothes. Naminé pressed herself against the inside of her walk in wardrobe, kind of embarrassed to be found out like this.

"But those clothes that you were wearing that night you went clubbing with us, where did they come from?" Kairi demanded, getting all up in Naminé's grill.

Naminé sighed and admitted it, "My mom bought those for me. Birthday presents."

"Sweet Shiva, we're going to have to do a complete overhaul. Naminé, get your credit card, we're going shopping," the red head declared triumphantly.

"What? I'm still in my pyjamas!"

"Get ready then!" Olette said, trying to supress her giggles behind her hand. Kairi dived into Naminé's clothing and helped her pick out a simple, but rather stylish outfit; a pale, orange-pink tank top under high-waisted sailor shorts, a tan blazer and nude suede platform heels. It was definitely a lot dressier than what Naminé was going for, but hell, it looked cute and she hoped she would look cute in it.

The three girls waved goodbye to Roxas as they exited the apartment and started heading down to Kairi's car. Naminé settled in the back as Kairi started the engine, adjusting the rear-view mirror so that their eyes met. The blond shivered for a moment and wondered if she was cold.

"Alright," Kairi grinned, shimmying her shoulders as she pulled out of their parking spot. "So you've got to dish out the dirt on what's been happening in the past two years, especially that stunt you pulled off almost a year ago."

Naminé was bout to open her mouth to retaliate when Olette butted in, "And no excuses. We are entitled to this information, and if you won't tell us, we will force it out of you sooner or later."

The blond proceeded to roll her eyes, wondering how she was going to phrase the complete mind-numbing boringness that had been her education. There had been no boys, no parties, and definitely no shenanigans worthy of Youtube. "I really can't say anything."

"Why not?"

"Because I was one of those boring kids that wouldn't stop studying," she admitted, a little embarrassed by it. "I'm not that smart, so I needed all the study time possible."

"Don't be ridiculous Naminé, you're plenty intelligent," Olette said.

"But not when it comes to school," she retorted, "because I might know a bit about politics and government, art and music, but when it comes to practical thinking, like math and geography, I'm a complete and total wreck."

"That's because you don't study. Remember that biology exam we had in the seventh grade?" Olette said, making Naminé cringe, "You were too busy working on a painting to study."

"It was a really exhilarating process, alright?"

"How have you been doing with your art lately?" Kairi asked her. "I mean, your dad bought you that huge art studio, so you must be happy about it, right?"

Naminé sighed and looked out the window, "Sure."

Both Olette and Kairi looked at each other worriedly. It was the brunet that broached the subject Naminé had been dreading speaking about, "Is- is everything alright with your art?"

Naminé shook her head and said, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay…" Kairi said.

"C'mon," the blond said, trying to sound cheery, "What have you guys been up to while I was gone. I bet you have a lot of memories to recount, right?"

"You bet!" Olette said, trying to keep up her enthusiasm also. "I mean, just last term Sora almost set fire to the chemistry lab."

"I didn't know Sora took chemistry."

"That's just it," Kairi laughed, "he doesn't. He was accompanying Roxas and the teacher didn't even realise he was there until he almost blew off all of Roxas' hair."

Naminé laughed, honestly thankful to know her friends hadn't changed too much. Her laugh was naturally quiet, a small giggle at best. She was either breathily chuckling, or releasing small exhales of joy, there wasn't anything between or beyond those modes.

"Oh, oh, there was that time, in tenth grade when I got glitter all over Roxas' new Converses, and he wouldn't talk to me for a week afterwards," Kairi offered.

"What about that time last year when Vanitas was feeling really vindictive and cut off Riku's hair?"

Naminé snorted, "Really? He really cut Riku's hair?"

"I know right?" Kairi grinned as she pulled into the car park of Radiant Garden Mall. "He loves his hair. He treats it like a pet. Ollie, have you ever seen him feeding it?"

"If you mean can after can of product, then yes. Yes I have. Anyway, it's really short now, and Riku sneakily managed to screw up one of Vanitas' music assignments for it. He replaced Vanitas' 'Gothic Symphony' project with the Nyan Cat Song."

The girls shared a good laugh as they made their way out of the car and into the mall. To Naminé's pleasure, it looked familiar and different at the same time.

Over the next few hours, Olette and Kairi guided her through all of the stores, sifting through outfit after outfit, looking for items that suited Naminé's image and petite figure; dresses, skirts, pants, tops, shoes and accessory after accessory after accessory. Naminé had a certain weakness for shoes, which was difficult for her because she hadn't completely learned how to master walking in heels.

They were in one particular boutique called Hollows with Olette holding up two different skirts and Kairi holding up three different tops by the hangers. Naminé was choosing between them, in the end picking up a sleeveless button down pastel orange top from Kairi, and a black skater skirt from Olette. They'll go perfectly with my new nude platform heels, Naminé thought gleefully.

She really couldn't believe that she was allowed to think such superficial thoughts instead of dreading the day in front of her like she used to. She really loved it. She loved hanging out with her friends, and she really loved being beautiful. She was just so happy to be alive right now.

"Okay, which one?"

"… Just take all of them."

& bgm: Just Give Me a Reason (P!nk & Nate Ruess Cover) - Alyssa Bernal and Josh Milan

When the trio returned to Naminé's apartment at five o'clock, Roxas was already dressed in his party clothes, ie. teal shirt, black fur hoodie, grey pants. Naminé was also in her party clothes, having chosen from all of her new buys; a white singlet with a crazy-cool graphic on it, that flashed her lacy black lingerie, black shorts with extra zippers, indie lace-up commando boots, a moustache necklace and an angel wing ring. All she had to do now was tease her hair and apply make up.

She dropped herself next to him on the couch while Olette and Kairi went up to her room to change.

"I hope you didn't completely exhaust yourself," Naminé stated sarcastically, as she watched Roxas click through the pages of an online manga she might have recognised.

"Excuse me," he said in a catty tone, " but where do you think these chips came from?" He made a grand gesture towards the packet of crisps nestled at his side; sour cream and chives flavour. She rolled her eyes and reached over to take a handful. Normally she wouldn't allow herself, it was against her dieting rules, but she felt like rebelling tonight. What was the point in partying if you weren't going to go wild?

But then again, eating a few crisps was a pathetic definition of going wild.

What a wild child. Next thing you know she'll be drinking juice pops in the car and running with scissors.

"But, seriously, have you done anything else today?"

"Yes, of course," Roxas said, clicking on the 'next' button. "I read through all my AP class textbooks, recorded notes and finished an essay on Lord of the Flies."

Naminé laughed and shoved her shoulder gently against his own, knowing what a complete shit head Roxas was being. He'd probably been working his way through this seemingly endless manga all day.

"Is that Deadman Wonderland?" she asked, crawling so that her torso was on his legs.

"Yes, Jesus, Naminé, you don't need to molest me to see the screen."

"You wish!"

"Aww. Lover's quarrel," Kairi said, alerting both blonde's to her and Olette's presence.

Roxas made a face and shook his head, "Don't say awkward shit like that, Kai. It's weird."

Kairi raised her eyebrow at the both of them before shrugging her shoulders. Naminé looked the both of them up and down, appreciating how pretty they looked in their clothes. Olette was wearing a cute little orange dress that crossed at the back and tied up behind her neck. It reached to just above her knees and flared out so it swished around her ankles, complimenting her pink suede heels nicely. Kairi was garbed in a cute pink crop top and high waisted black jeans. Adorning her feet were cute pale pink platform sandals.

"You two look really pretty," Naminé said, the words leaving her mouth before she was really aware they'd escaped.

"Thanks Naminé," Kairi replied, before turning a stink-eye in Roxas' direction. "If only Roxas was as nice as you."

"Hey, don't go to me fishing for compliments."

"Well," the red-head said, checking her phone for the time, "it's about time I head to the roof top to prepare everything. I've got over an hour for decorating the rooftop. Do you guys want to come with?"

"I'll come!" Olette said.

"I think I'll stay here," Roxas said, still clicking through the pages of Deadman Wonderland.

"Me too," Naminé stated, who was now engrossed with the manga also.

When the both of them left, Roxas readjusted himself and draped a hand around Naminé's shoulders. She was kind of suspicious of the movement, but she let it slide.

"So, did you have fun?"

"No, Roxas. Shopping was the absolute pinnacle of a disastrous time," she replied sarcastically.

He rolled his eyes and started drumming his fingers against her skin. She realised that he didn't drum his fingers in a straight line, instead he put down separate fingers at different times, as if he was playing the piano against her shoulder. It was a unique facet of him she hadn't realised before.

"It's just… It's really good to have you back Naminé."

"Thanks."

"Are you looking forward to this party?" he murmured.

Naminé reflected over her answer, realising that no, parties had never really been her scene. But there was a feeling in the back of her brain telling her that yes, she was looking forward to the reaction her classmates would have to her new appearance, and yes, there was a tiny part of her that wanted to rub in the fact that she was no longer an ugly duckling, but she was never really sure she could be a wild party animal. Naminé had just been a sheltered little nerd over the last few years.

"Eh," she shifted her hand in a so-so gesture and he made an affirmative noise in the back of his throat. "I mean, the closest thing I've been to a party in the last year was Club Spades the night we all went out."

Roxas laughed a little, his body movement rocking through hers as well, "Good times. Oh, I've been meaning to ask you something about that."

"Yeah?" she asked, getting up and crossing her legs, tilting her hand and running her fingers through her messy blond tresses.

"Did you and Vanitas hide together that night?"

Naminé turned away, looking down at her legs as she tried to will away her blush. "Um… yeah, we did."

"Where did you guys hide? Because, honestly, we were looking for a solid thirty minutes and we still couldn't find you."

She turned to face him again and grinned, placing a finger to her lips, "A magician never reveals her secrets."

Unfortunately, that didn't have the desired effect on him she was hoping for, "Are you looking forward to seeing him tonight?"

"Vanitas is coming tonight?" she asked, a little too fast for her liking.

"Well yeah," Roxas nodded slowly. "Why wouldn't he come?"

"Um… doesn't he not go to Rising Falls anymore?"

"He does."

Naminé was arguing back a little too forcefully not to be suspicious. "But when I came here a year ago, everyone said he wasn't going to school any more."

The spiky-headed blond nodded slowly, "Yes. That was the month he was suspended for beating up the boys who were bulling Sora."

"Why was Sora being bullied?"

"Because he just came out of the closet," Roxas replied.

"Oh, okay," Naminé replied. First Kairi, and then Sora. Well, maybe she should have seen it coming.

"Weird, huh? I thought for sure Riku would be coming out first."

Naminé inclined her head softly, looking at Roxas through strands of platinum gold, "I thought that Riku was dating Xion?"

"I mean…" Roxas creaked his neck, Naminé's eyes roving over the tanned skin and the smooth column of his neck. "Riku seems more effeminate than Sora. Don't get me wrong, I thought they were both straight, but I honestly thought Riku would come out before Sora if they turned out to be homosexual."

"Well, good for him," Naminé said cheerily. She arched to grab her phone and check the time, knowing the party was probably already in full swing by now.

"Do you want to go up now?"

"I'll just be a minute."

& bgm: Levels - Skrillex

The 'decorations' for the party, actually were huge strobe lights glimmering from the zigzag bars of a large stage, where an unknown band was playing Fall Out Boy's Light It Up. Everyone was coloured blue, pink and purple or green, yellow and red from the stage lights sending colour throughout the mob.

Naminé had just climbed through the fire escape behind Roxas, and was completely overwhelmed by the scene. It was like nothing she'd ever been to before. To the left were a bunch of raggedy looking old lounge chairs where other teenagers were chilling or making out, to the right were three tables stacked with food; burgers, treats, baked goods, and pizza. Underneath the tables were coolers filled with soda and alcohol and right at the end of the roof was the beautiful stage showering everything with light.

As soon as Roxas and Naminé walked forward a group of seemingly drunk people on a couch near the entrance cheered. One of them was familiar, and got up to greet them. After examining him a little closely, she realised it was Riku. She was expecting the long hair, so when he came up to her expecting a hug she looked confused for a minute.

"Oh my God, Riku!" she jumped into his arms, laughing when he twirled her around. "Jesus Christ, did you get taller?"

"I see you're still the same, Naminé," he replied in normal, smooth tone. She let out a small exhale, rolling her eyes in embarrassment.

"It's awesome to have you back."

She'd never really been that close with Riku, but she was happy about the true sentiment in his voice. She was about to respond when she was tackled by a head of brown spikes.

"Nami!"

When she was properly acquainted with most of her friends, she found herself constantly being reintroduced to people she hardly remembered. At the moment, Hayner had his hand around her shoulder, and he was steering her in the direction of the soccer team.

"Hayner, I don't believe this is the best idea," she said, squirming in his grasp, unfortunately, he'd somehow become musclier over the course of their separation and had a good firm grip on her shoulder.

"Don't be silly, Nam. Once they realise how amazing you've become they aren't going to treat you like absolute shit anymore. Isn't that what you've always wanted?"

"Of course but-" she was still reluctant to admit that the only jocks she'd ever really had a conversation with, were Hayner and Riku, and she really didn't consider them jocks anymore, even if they were on sports teams and such. She'd openly dissed Beat before, but that was a year ago. Her confidence was a waning identity.

"Hey guys," Hayner said, pulling Naminé into the middle of a set of couches where the soccer jocks were speaking about miscellaneous things, their girlfriends draping over them like blankets.

"Who's the hottie you've got with you?" one of them asked.

Naminé's face fell into a grimace. She knew it was a compliment, but when he called her that she felt objectified. She made a slight hissing sound in Hayner's direction, but he just ignored it and pushed her forward.

"Guys, this is Naminé."

There was a moment of silence amongst the jocks who raised an eyebrow as her name settled into their consciousness as something they were meant to remember. The time between Hayner's announcement, and the first jocks' affirmation was something akin to torture, twitching her fingers and urging her to bite her tongue.

"Holy shit," the tone was the expected mix of disbelief and amazement she was expecting. Naminé tried and failed to stop herself from smirking, her eyes shifting to sultry as she batted her thick blond lashes. Admittedly, a reaction like that was enough to get her off. "You mean, you were that ugly kid Xion used to bully all the time?" When she heard the 'u' word, she jerked her head and lowered an eyebrow, the edge of her lips twitching up in annoyance.

"'Ugly's such a relative word," she replied, shaking her head and switching the weight of her foot. "But if you're going to be blunt," she shrugged, closing her eyes, "I guess."

There was a surprise murmur among them, and three of them wolf whistled at her. Something about the sound didn't sit right with her, and she drummed her fingers against Hayner's hand on her shoulder, shaking her head and turning away. She wanted to convince herself she did not become who she was, for the attention of some brainless jocks.

This was not how I expected it to go.

For a while she wandered the crowds with no real destination, spacing out to the music pumping in the background. Someone came by with a tray of shots and she reached forward to take one, downing it and loving sweet, oozing burn. Naminé shifted through the crowd, looking for someone she recognised, or something to do. This was what she was afraid of; looking awkward and unsure of herself.

Irritated, she grabbed one of the beers from the coolers and went down the fire escape, taking the elevator down the bottom floor. She took a quick glance at the teenagers loitering in the hallway around the entrance to Club Spades, unsure whether they were here for the club or the roof party.

"Hey there, pretty girl."

Naminé kept on walking, not exactly ignoring the cat call, but rather unused to being addressed in such a way, assuming the man was speaking to someone else. She didn't know whoever was speaking was actually addressing her until she felt a hand on her shoulder.

Blinking in surprise, she turned to address the man and his friends, raising an eyebrow and licking her lips. She waited for him to talk, not appreciative of his roaming, wolf eyes and their predatory gleam. Huffing quietly, her fingers twitched for a cigarette.

"Is there something special going on tonight?" his breath smelt of fumes and a strong scent she remembered as scotch. She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to fan away the stench discreetly by loosely pressing her curled knuckles to her lips.

"Rooftop party," she replied breathily, trying her best to keep from coughing. The tickle in her throat became an insistent ache.

"Anyway in?" one of his companions asked.

"Sorry," she shrugged, "invitation only." At that she tried to walk away, coughing in as lady-like a manner as possible.

"Perhaps we weren't being persuasive enough, darling?" he asked, dropping an octave, as if that was meant to intimidate her. She rolled her eyes and tugged her shoulder out of his grip. This time, she managed to reach the entrance of the club and open the door before the guy that was harassing her turned her around again.

"Listen, bitch-" he growled.

"Luxord," Naminé called in the direction of the bar. She caught Xigbar's, Luxord's best friend and bartender, attention and he caught Luxord's. Already, some of the man's followers were leaving him to go outside.

"Bollocks," the blond man swore, "it's you again." He was definitely addressing the man at Naminé's side, "I threw you out last time because you were making a right tizzy over something stupid. If I find that you've been harassing my cousin, I'll call the police."

"He has been," Naminé stated simply.

"Hey, no need to get the cops on the line," the man said defensively, probably surprised by Naminé and Luxord's relation. "I wasn't annoyin' her, wasn't I, dear?" he said with a chuckle, placing his hands on Naminé's shoulders.

"Don't touch me," she growled, inciting the immediate removal of his hands. He left grumbling about lack of hospitality these days, and Naminé almost threw her bottle at the man's head. How so completely rude.

She followed him out and watched him walk down the streets, meeting with his cowardice posse at the end of it, turning around and making an obscene gesture with two fingers and his tongue. She shuddered in disgust as she patted her pockets for a cigarette, knowing she hid one amongst her earphones somewhere. It was rather cold and windy outside. She looked up when she heard the sound of a skateboard pulling up next to her, an easy smile coming onto her face when she recognised him, pulling the messed up strands from her eyes.

"Yo," he smirked as Naminé drummed her fingers against her hips, inclining her head.

"Hey, you've got a smoke?"

He slipped a cigarette case out of his back pocket. He gestured for her to come closer and he slipped one into her hand, she turned it around and slipped it between her lips. Naminé cupped her mouth with both her hands as he flicked on the lighter, her craving for the fumes intensifying as the little light flickered from the gusts between her fingers. Their eyes met for a second, blue eyes meeting irises that had gone light brown with darkness.

She felt something undeniable; chemistry, small shudders all over her body, tingles along her hips and arms, breasts and waist, remembering moments hundreds of evenings ago. She sucked in smoke methodically, as her eyes roved over slim, powerful arms and the slender curves of his neck, the bulky, cross-adorned chain hanging between his pectorals. They shared a moment of brief intimacy until she cut it off by turning her eyes away.

"Thanks…"

"I see you've already come outside to relieve yourself," Vanitas grinned, the corner of his lips revealing a sharp-looking tooth, "The party can't be that boring, can it?"

"I can be when the entire soccer team is trying to grope you," she muttered in response.

"C'mon, a smart girl like you needs to respond negatively to that," he teased, blowing out a stream of smoke from between two curved lips. "Have you tried mace? The f-word?"

Her laughter bubbled up her throat, and she knocked her shoulder into Vanitas' gently, pushing her bangs away from her face by combing them upwards with her fingers.

"Just as well," he murmured. "Parties never really seemed like your scene."

"It's not that bad," she lied.

Vanitas shifted his head in her direction, so she could see the curve of his honey-gold eyes, "Really?" The lilt of his voice and the playful tweak of his lips gave everything away. He knew she was lying, when any ordinary person would have believed her and dropped it.

Naminé expelled a lungful loudly through her nostrils, watching the trail of twisting smoke as she gestured her words, "It isn't like how it was when it was just the eleven of us. I don't like not having anyone to talk to."

"Your glamorous life not everything you thought it would be?"

She opened her mouth to retort something sarcastic, or mean, but after a moment of recollection she nodded her head, returning her gaze to the opposite side of the street, examining the details of the elaborate town houses mirroring her building.

"Yeah."

The both of them threw down their cigarettes and Vanitas used a booted toe to stub the embers out, picking them up and throwing them into a bucket of sand near Club Spade's alleyway. Naminé watched as Vanitas gestured to his skateboard, and she nodded, "You can drop it off at my apartment."

As they climbed the stairs the black-haired boy said, "A little birdie told me that you're rooming with Roxas."

"This little birdie wouldn't happen to be blond, blue-eyed, and lacking a brain-to-mouth filter, would he?" she asked sweetly.

"You'd be right. Ventus is definitely more of a gossip than he lets on."

"That doesn't upset you, does it?"

"Ventus being a loud mouth? No I-"

"I meant about me rooming with Roxas."

Vanitas blinked, a moment of surprise showing in his eyes, but a second later it was gone, replaced with a look of indifference, "Why would it?"

Naminé just shook her head and refused to respond, creating a tense and embarrassed atmosphere. They'd just made it to the floor underneath Naminé's when Kairi rushed up to them, her dress soaking through with brown liquid.

"That's an interesting look on you, Kairi," Vanitas snickered.

"Bite me," she snapped, pushing red-velvet bangs out of her eyes. "Naminé, I need you to bring up more refreshments from my apartment, you don't mind do you? I left a few bags at your place, and I need to change. Some of Hayner's friends are absolute assholes."

"Sure," Naminé replied, giving Kairi her keys.

"Wanna come along?" the blond asked him.

"Don't let that demon into my apartment!" Kairi shouted from the other end of the hall.

Once Kairi was out of sight Vanitas smirked and shrugged his shoulders, pushing Naminé in the direction of her friend's apartment. Her key read '27', so the both of them hunted down the room, wondering what awaited them in Kairi's apartment. Being Kairi's distant friend until a few years ago, she'd never actually seen the inside of her apartment, only her room in some of the selfies that she took. So the both of them were quite taken aback when they stumbled into a beautifully decorated, rather pastel apartment, with fancy chandeliers and the scent of daisies wafting in from the open window.

"Okay," Vanitas said, probably unable to handle the amount of endorphins surrounding him, "I'll just wait outside. Holler if you need help."

"Will do," Naminé snickered, venturing further into the interior design nightmare. She spied a few bottles of wine and alcohol as well as a cooler of soda near the kitchen sink.

She was about to pick up a six-pack when she heard an odd noise coming from what she assumed was one of the bedrooms. The back of her neck prickled as the panicking instincts started to seep in. The chill ran up her spine when she realised the noise had stopped. She snapped her neck to the side, rushing over to Kairi's fireplace and picking up a fire poker, brandishing it like a spear. The noise returned; the rustle of sheets, a careless whisper.

Pressing herself to the wall, she steeled her nerves and swung open the bedroom door only to be met with a surprised scream.

"What the ever-living fuck?" Riku yelled.

Naminé was stuck, frozen where she was, her eyes bulging at the scene before her. Riku was shirtless and covered to the waist with a bumpy-looking blanket shielding his dignity. The bump between his legs swore quietly and a spiky head of brown locks slipped out of the blanket to settle in Riku's lap.

"What the hell is wrong with you Riku? It's one thing to tease me about being a virgin but when you mock my oral skills-"

"Sora, for once in your life, shut the fuck up and turn around."

"What's wr- Oh…" Sora twisted his neck and offered Naminé a beaming smile. "Hey Naminé. What brings you to Kairi's apartment?"

Vanitas jogged in, placing a hand on Naminé's shoulder saying, "Hey, I heard a scream, what-?" He absorbed the sight before him, and his face split in half with a grin, "I knew it! I totally called it. Ven owes me sixty bucks."

"So Xion is just your beard after all?" Naminé blurted out.

"I know, it's scandalous, isn't it?" Sora replied, seemingly unfazed by the entire scenario.

"Do you mind?" Riku growled, making a gesture for the both of them to shoo. Naminé shared a look with Vanitas and the both of them burst into laughter. How the both of them could 'get it on' surrounded by Kairi's stuffed toys and pink wallpaper, they would never understand.

"Hey," Sora said. "Would you mind keeping this a secret?"

"For whose sake?" Vanitas asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Riku's," the brunet replied, remaining skilfully poker-faced.

Both intruders shrugged and exited the room, closing the door behind them. They lugged the drinks up to the top floor trading disbelieving comments about the state of Kairi's room. It was like it housed a middle-schooler.

"Okay, I know that some parties are crazy, but I definitely wasn't expecting that."

"Honey, we're just getting started."

& bgm: Morning Sun ft. Miley Cyrus - Rock Mafia

Just over three o'clock and the party was starting to thin out. Some went home, and whoever lived in the building was allowing people to crash at their place. Olette and Pence were crashing at Kairi's place while Roxas returned to his room at the flat.

Kairi was flirting up a stranger on the other side of the roof, Xion was slow dancing with another handsome devil to the band, who were playing a much quieter song, Hayner and his soccer buddies had gone to the local McDonalds and she was stuck with Vanitas, Axel and Larxene for company, sharing around a strange fruity concoction that had acquired a green colour. Naminé had remembered it to taste like peppermint the first time it came around, but she had been since numbed to the taste. They'd moved to her apartment a while ago, and she was glad to be back in familiar territory rather than up on the roof with the rest of the hard core party animals. They were surrounded with glasses of juice and cherry, mink blankets and new pillows that were still a little hard for her liking.

"Van, you should have seen the first time Naminé rode one, honestly, the funniest thing ever."

"It wasn't that amusing, you're just a jackass," Naminé laughed, passing the drink to Larxene, who agreed with the sentiment.

"Much as I hate to admit it, Nami here did a lot better than Axel did when he was starting."

"Really?" Vanitas asked in disbelief.

"It's because Ax was too much of a bonehead to ask for help." Axel responded to this by throwing a pillow in Larxene's face, to which she responded by abruptly throwing a shot glass at his head. She missed and it hit him in the chest instead.

"Hey, not everyone has the kind of cash that Naminé has on her."

"Really? You're going to bring class into this again?" Naminé said, rolling her eyes.

"Not every day you meet a rich shmuck as awesome as Nami though," Axel reached around Larxene to pat the little blond's shoulder.

"Yeah, whatever," Naminé replied dismissively.

"Aww, don't be so cold, Nami. Ice princess? Want to kiss and make up?" the red-head teased, pouting his lips. Larxene rolled her eyes and stuff the bottle into Axel's mouth.

"Axel really shouldn't be here," Larxene shrugged. "He's got a to meet the stunt actors for his new movie tomorrow and he's gonna be hung over for it."

"Don't be a kill-joy Larxene," he moaned, burying his head into her shoulder. The blond rolled her eyes and checked the time.

"We better be off, before he regrets it enough to skip work tomorrow." She hauled a reluctant Axel off the couch and dragged him through the door, closing it after her. Larxene had certainly grown from the trigger-happy violent teen she used to be, but she did display the old tendencies every now and then.

"Bye," Naminé and Vanitas said at the same time.

"Just you and me now, Nami," his words sounded sultry and seductive in her ear, but she could have been imagining things. It was probably the alcohol making her uncomfortably aroused. Her vision was getting blurry and her thoughts weren't connecting together like they usually did.

"Well thank you for pointing that out, Captain Obvious, and making this moment more awkward than it had to be."

"It doesn't have to be awkward," Vanitas said, a slight slur in his words. He'd been like a sponge all night, always some kind of alcoholic beverage in his hand. "C'mon Naminé, just pick a philosophical topic and we'll keep the ball rolling from there."

"Wha-? How can you even say phile-philose-philosophi… smart words with the amount you've drunken tonight?"

"'How much you drank'," he corrected.

"You know what I meant?"

"Yes."

"Don't be a dick about it," she grinned, leaning forward so that her forehead brushed against his own. Naminé had closed her eyes and was grinning foolishly, head pounding with the bass of the music which could be heard through the ceiling, and the vibration thrumming through her body and sending warm tingles all over her limbs.

Warm, spiced lips brushed against her own, and her eyes snapped open, her long blond lashes tangling in his own. She was surprised by the advancement, and accidentally knocked their teeth together. They pulled apart, cringing and clutching their mouths.

"Wow, that was uncalled for," he choked out.

"Some warning would have been nice."

"I'm trying to be spontaneous here."

She rolled her eyes, knowing that her cheeks were colouring themselves with blush. Vanitas had tried to kiss her. Someone wanted her. Someone intelligent, someone witty, someone as hot as the fucking sun. Her inhibitions locked in some dark corner of her brain, she sneaked forward to kiss him again, softly this time, her tongue lining his lips, trying to pry them apart.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pushing her against her lime green couch, the cold embrace of his necklace raising goosebumps on her skin. "I thought-" she said breathlessly as he brushed his nose against her jawline, "that you were…" her breath escaped her in a moan, as she gripped Vanitas' shoulder blades, "trying to say something philo…so…phical?"

"Geez, Naminé, what do you want me to say?" he pressed his lips to hers quickly, a peck at most, before pressing them insistently to her neck again. "I support the liberal party." He dragged his lips along the column of her throat, leaving behind trails of fire in their wake, "I honestly couldn't give two shits about the carbon tax." He positioned himself to comfortable lie about her, elbows near the bottom of her rib cage, "I think Senator Vexen is driving this economy into the ground," he stretched out the word, the purr of his voice a definite turn on for her.

"This is the worst dirty talk in the history of sex, Vanitas," she grinned against his skin, loving the spicy, refreshing scent.

"Would you like me to speak in French?" he whispered in her ear, biting on the lobe gently and teasing it between his teeth.

"Can't be worse than your news report."

He ground his hips into her own, igniting sparks across Naminé's body as he said, "On voit beaucoup de pains dans la boulangerie."

"Yes…" she sighed, arching into his body, his beautiful words a fog in her brain as she worked through the unbearable pressure in her body.

"La lampe est dans le salon."

Naminé blinked quietly, her memory trying to understand where she'd heard those phrases before. She wrapped her arms around Vanitas' back, her nails digging into his shoulder blades again.

"Omelette du fromage," he purred, but this time, Naminé did manage to catch on and started laughing uncontrollably, her hands slipping into the hair at Vanitas' nape, trying to control her raucous giggles. Vanitas laughed with her, the sound a low rumble in the back of his throat that sent tingles down her spine. His chuckle rocked her body and she spread her legs to accommodate his form.

The blond looked up at him, bringing up her hand to pull some bangs away from his eyes. They looked so gloriously lupine, and his smile just ignited all her instincts until her nerves were fraying a the edges.

"Shh," she muttered between giggles, pressing one of her fingers to his lips. "Roxas is in the next room, remember?"

"Well then," he smirked, pecking her lips and sliding down, "it would be," he slipped a kiss between her collar bones, in the valley between her breasts, "in your best interest," a large hand slipped underneath her shirt, mapping out her toned stomach, "to keep," he dragged his lips along the smooth crevice between her hip and her leg, his fingers slipping into her belt loops, "quiet…"

Everything after that was a pleasurable blur; heated kisses that set her on fire, unrivalled bliss that set her aglow from within, deep murmurs and passion that set red groves into their skin.

& bgm: Dirty Little Secret - All-American Rejects

She inhaled once and was awake, her head buried into the crevice of his arms, hand drumming over a goose bumped pectoral. Her hand slipped in and around the chain hanging from his chest, wondering if Vanitas had ever mentioned faith in any religion. She looked up and watched Vanitas as he slept, her gaze caressing the smooth line of his jaw, and the curve of his feathery, dark lashes. She exhaled and was suddenly aware of his chest rising out of time with hers, expelling quiet gusts of alcohol-tinted breath from between pale lips.

It suddenly dawned on her exactly what had happened; she'd slept with Vanitas.

Again.

She bolted upright, taking the blanket draped over the both of them and clutching it to her chest, pressing her hand in the crevice's of the couch, feeling for her bra. Her movements startled Vanitas awake, who cracked open his gorgeous golden eyes and sleepily caressed her arm with the back of his knuckles.

"Hey," his voice was husky, and still amazingly attractive.

She offered a weak smile before looking around for her underwear, managing to wriggle it on underneath the mess of blankets. Vanitas stretched and looked around for his boxers, pulling the blanket off suddenly, prompting Naminé to let out a girlish scream. "God dammit, it's cold."

"Shh," Vanitas murmured, "Roxas, remember?"

"Like you cared when you were trying to make me scream," Naminé replied snippily, narrowing her eyes at Vanitas' smug expression.

"Man, I can't believe it happened again," Vanitas sighed, pulling on his underwear lethargically.

"You mean, you can't believe you got drunk and tricked yourself into another girl's pants?" Naminé said, pulling on her shorts. Vanitas shook his head slowly, casting his eyes in the direction of Roxas' room. She followed his gaze, looking anxious as she slipped on her tank top. "Don't worry about him," Vanitas assured, "according to Ven, Roxas sleeps like a log. The only thing that can wake him up is if you slip an ice cube into his clothes."

She rolled her eyes and settled back onto the couch watching Vanitas dress. He looked around for his shirt, as her eyes traced the almost artistic arch of his shoulders, the soft crevice of his spine, the shadow of the dimples just peeking over his boxer shorts. Her fingers itched, but this time, not for a cigarette, but for pencils, and scraps of paper. Naminé was surprised by the instinctual desire, the want to etch Vanitas' form onto paper.

"Hey," she murmured shyly, "could I draw you sometime?"

Vanitas swivelled his head, so the outline of his golden eyes could be seen, resting atop arched cheekbones. They lifted up, as if he was smiling.

"Now we're just using each other, aren't we?"

She could see the look in his eyes, the spark on inspiration hit her at the same time. The blond assumed they had been struck with the same idea.

"You know, it's a lot easier than an actual relationship," he said.

"And we'd be able to call each other whenever we needed release," she shrugged.

"We already know we're physically compatible."

"We wouldn't have to feel self conscious about each other."

He chuckled and ran a hand through his mussed up hair, "I can't believe I'm actually proposing this, but-"

They were interrupted by the creak of Roxas' door. Without even thinking, Naminé pushed Vanitas onto the couch, he pulled the blanket over him, hiding from Roxas' line of sight. She sat down on his stomach, ignoring the pained growl.

"Hey Roxas!" she chirped.

Roxas sneered at her, pushing his bangs out of his eyes lazily, "What time did you go to sleep last night?"

"I don't know. Three?" she guessed.

He looked around suspiciously before shrugging, "I thought I heard someone else in here. I guess I was just dreaming it." He stood their awkwardly for a moment, scratching his elbow before he looked up at her, "Do you want to get some coffee?"

She thought about it for a moment, honestly wanting to, but she was sitting on top of a problem. Vanitas shifted underneath her and Naminé pretended to look embarrassed. "I'm sorry Roxas, but Kairi just texted me. She said she needs help clearing up after the party."

"Yeah," Roxas admitted, looking a little disappointed. "She has a hell of a lot to clean up."

"And she has to get it done with time to spare." She laughed nervously, "Why don't you take Pence and Olette? They crashed in Kairi's apartment."

"Sure," he smiled and waved. She watched him close the door before Vanitas heaved her off, sending her crashing into the floor.

"Thanks!" she said sarcastically.

"Your welcome," he smirked, placing his head in a hand, posing like someone ready to be ravished. She rolled her eyes and rubbed at her eyes, still a little too tired to be lying this early in the morning. "Tut, tut, Naminé. You're breaking the poor boy's heart."

"Go deep throat a knife." She replied, without any hesitation whatsoever. Vanitas simply kept that smug look on his face to further irritate her. "So, we've probably got to establish some rules."

"Don't worry," Vanitas said, pulling his phone from his back pocket. "Insane people have already established these things on the internet." Naminé sat next to him, watching his dexterous fingers type in 'fuck buddy rules'. She cringed a little at the term, but shrugged nonchalantly. "Swear by these rules."

"What?"

"Swear on them," he said, in complete seriousness.

"Honestly?"

He shrugged one of his shoulders, looking ridiculously cute as he grinned at the ground. When their eyes met, he said, "It's like swearing on the bible, except you're not allowed to lie this time."

"You don't lie after swearing on the bible," she said, smiling in disbelief.

"C'mon."

She glanced at the 'Etiquette of Friends with Benefits' page he was on, smirking, "We've already broken some of these."

"Naminé," he said imploringly, widening his eyes and pouting playfully. The site looked so ridiculous. She placed her hands on his own.

"Purely physical."

"No emotion," she agreed.

They finished in tandem, "Just sex."

Etiquette of Friends with Benefits

1. No cuddling.

2. Making out is not necessary.

3. Never ask questions afterwards.

4. No sleepovers.

5. Purely physical.

6. If it's not fun, then stop it.

7. Nothing more than sex.

8. No phone calls. Only booty calls.

9. No jealousy.

10. No personal issues.

11. Shaven. Bathed. Groomed.

12. It will come to an end eventually.

13. No friendship.

14. No lying.

15. No bonding.

16. Clear communication. No arguments.

17. Use protection.

18. Try to avoid each other in public.

19. Private affair. No one else must know.

20. Call it off once someone starts getting too emotional.

tbc.

Hope you enjoyed that! Please leave a review if you did. Remember that Naminé's outfits for the chapter can be accessed through linkage on my profile.

kacey.