Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return V2

"Maybe you did, but I'm not an idiot," Roxas said, seeing the moisture in Namine's eyes. It hurt him to see it, and he wished he didn't have to keep discussing this, but it was something he needed to know. "You had feelings for him, didn't you?" From what he gathered, it was enough to know the truth. He just wanted it confirmed.

 

Namine shook her head softly, gazing down at the ground. "...No, I didn't," she said quietly. "I knew all along that I wasn't anybody he could ever love, so I didn't view him as anything more than a friend who saved me in my time of need." That was the honest truth; she hadn't loved Sora because she knew he could never love her back. She was only a Nobody, after all.

 

Roxas's gaze hardened at Namine's words, the blond not believing them. "I can't deal with anymore lies, Namine," he said strictly. He shook his head, flexing his fists. "For some reason, I can't make myself believe what you just said." So she was put under the Organization's control and was forced to make Sora come to her. Yeah, he got that. But he also understood that somehow it was more than that, more than doing it against her own free will and more than doing it because she wanted to be free.

 

Namine shook her head again, keeping her gaze on the ground. You can't deal with any more lies, and I can't deal with talking about this anymore, she thought sadly. She didn't want to think about anything that occurred at Castle Oblivion; she wanted to act as if it never happened. Obviously, though, Roxas wasn't going to let that happen. Why did he force this kind of stuff upon her when it obviously brought her pain?

 

Roxas exhaled heavily through his nose, closing his eyes. He was done with this. "I'm outta here," he said. He opened his eyes and turned around, his gaze momentarily falling on Sora. It wasn't a soft stare, but more of a glare. Regardless, the boy walked out of the room, grabbed his coat, and walked out of the house, slamming the door behind him.

 

Namine folded her hands in her lap, only undoing the her grip when she felt a tear escape her eye. She brought up a hand and wiped at it immediately, saddened that Roxas didn't believe her. She thought things had been going well between the two of them, but apparently not.

Sora had caught onto Roxas' glare and stared back at him until his Nobody was out of the room. He stared down at the couch, surprised at how Roxas had pointed the finger at Namine like that. "Has he done that before?" he asked softly, not looking up.

"...Yes," Namine said softly, sadness coming through in her voice. This wasn't the first time Roxas lost his temper, and it wasn't the first time it had happened to her. She was always so sad when she was put into that position by him, but she had promised him that she would love him no matter what. Some days, though, that was a hard promise to keep.

 

Roxas pulled his coat on as he walked down the path from the porch, tugging his jacket on in his anger. He stuffed his hands in his coat pockets, starting for home. Namine had feelings for Sora; she had to. Why else would she pick him? Roxas was Sora's Nobody, so that was a good enough reason he supposed. But...he was part of the organization that held her captive, and he was never going to be Sora. He was the exact opposite of him, if anything. Surely that showed these days.

 

"He's yelled at you before?" Sora asked, lifting his eyes and looking at Namine on the couch. He found that hard to believe; Roxas clearly loved Namine. Why in the world would he treat her badly?

"Yes," Namine said again, her voice even softer than before. He had started a few conflicts with her since he got home, and she was starting to understand why. The months he was gone made an even larger change in him then he allowed her to see. It made Namine sad, knowing that Roxas wouldn't be open and honest with her completely.

 

Roxas wasn't sure he could care about this stuff anymore. Clearly, he wasn't the person Namine had set her sights on. The person he used to be, the part that was much like Sora originally, was gone. He was the exact opposite now, and he knew that was going to affect things. A lot of things.

 

Sora looked down, frowning. A lot had changed in the past four months, like he had told Kairi earlier that very day. And unfortunately, it didn't look like things were going to return to normal. Not now, not ever. Sora could only see the troubles of life at that time, and he wasn't able to see past it. I've lost my girlfriend and my best friend, he thought to himself, bringing his hands to his face to cover his sadness. It's never going to be alright again.

 

A few days later...

Roxas looked up at the house as he approached it, blowing out a cloud of warm air. After a few days of silence and cooling off, he decided he wanted to apologize. Namine and Sora deserved that from him, even if he was still having his doubts. Roxas continued up the pathway and ascended the porch steps, approaching the door. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and rang the doorbell. When he heard the chime, he knew that he would have to put his thoughts aside for the sake of his relationships with either of them. He was different, but he knew that these friendships were important, darkness or no darkness.

 

Sora glanced at Namine, who was sitting on the love-seat in his living room. She had come over within the past half hour, and they had been talking about life lately, whether that involved Roxas or Kairi or each other. They had talked about Castle Oblivion a little bit too, but not much, since neither of them had fond memories of that place. When he heard the doorbell ring, he grabbed his crutches and got up off the couch, going to answer the front door. When he got there, he had to shift his crutches so he could bring one hand forward and open the door, the brunet finding Roxas on the other side when he successfully pulled the door open.

Namine folded her hands in her lap, looking down at them as she sat alone in the living room. Roxas had wanted to meet with her and Sora, and she assumed that Roxas suggested Sora's home because he was still on crutches. But then again, Roxas didn't seem to care much about what Sora felt these days. Or what Namine felt, for that matter. She hadn't spoken to him since he stormed off a few days ago.

 

Roxas met Sora's eyes as soon as the door opened, and the blond casted his sight away immediately. "Uh, hey," he said, lifting a hand to rub the back of his head. He looked up at Sora then, his eyes still guarded. He was defensive ever since he found out about things the other day, but then again, Roxas had never really been off guard. Not since he'd been home.

 

"Hey," Sora said back, nodding once in greeting. Let's get this done with, whatever it is, he thought, not knowing why Roxas wanted to meet with him and Kairi. The brunet turned around and started towards the living room, expecting that Roxas would shut the door and come into the room after him.

 

Roxas sighed quietly and stepped into the house when Sora started back to the living room, the blond coming in and shutting the door behind him. He began to shrug off his coat now that he was inside Sora's warmer house. He wasn't sure what exactly he was going to say, but his two friends deserved apologies from him, he knew that much.

 

Sora worked his way back into the living room, finding a place to sit on the couch that was near the love-seat. He glanced at Namine before he set his crutches against the couch, the brunet leaning forward and letting his elbows rest on his knees. As much as he hated to admit it, he was tired. It was hard getting used to "normal" living without the support of his friends. Roxas wasn't speaking to him, Kairi hadn't called, and Namine...well, she had her own problems. But despite that, she had called him a few times to check up on him. He appreciated that, more than words could express. These days, it seemed like Namine was the link that kept all of them together.

 

After hanging up his coat, Roxas slipped off his shoes. He set them near the door and tugged on his white long-sleeved shirt as he headed for the living room. He came around the corner and paused once he was in the room. His eyes quickly scanned the area, seeing that Sora had one couch occupied and Namine had the other. Weighing his options, he figured neither wanted to sit by him, so he made a decision. Roxas walked over to the chair that gave him a good view of the other two people in the room, sitting down.

 

Namine looked up when she noticed movement in the room, her eyes finding Roxas just as he sat down in a chair. Alone. She immediately lifted a hand and tucked back a strand of hair, trying to hide her sadness. She didn't understand why Roxas acted the way he did sometimes, but she wasn't going to question it now. For all she knew, he could have still been on a short fuse, and his temper was the last thing she wanted to see right now.

 

Roxas leaned forward a little, leaning his elbows on his legs and clasping his hands. He looked down at them and then glanced up at his friends. "I, uh, appreciate you guys agreeing to this," he started softly, his eyes casting down to his hands once more. "I know you probably didn't want to after the way I acted a few days ago."

 

Sora kept his gaze downward, staying silent. After all the horrible stuff Roxas said the other day, Sora supposed that he didn't have much of a reason to be patient or gracious with his friend. But he was desperate for friendship these days, the teen needing support as he waited to hear Kairi's decision. Whether he liked it or not, he really needed to be on good terms with Roxas.