Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return

Namine made a "hmph" noise, folding her arms across her chest. "Even without practicing for two months, you're better than I am." She faked a pout, eying the guitar. She was getting better the more that she played, but she didn't have Roxas' raw talent.

 

Roxas laughed softly and spun the guitar around in his hand, holding it above the edge of the bed and out toward Namine. "Show me," he insisted softly. The last time he had seen her play was when he and Sora caught the girls playing at Kairi's. That was a long time ago, and he needed a refresher.

 

Namine arched a brow at the guitar, looking from the instrument to Roxas. "Right now?" she asked, amusement coming through in her tone. She hadn't expected this turn of events, and she wasn't sure if she could focus on the right chords when her head was still a bit foggy.

 

Roxas shrugged, glancing away as he thought about it. "I guess you don't have to," he admitted, bringing the guitar back to rest in his lap. "I mean, if you don't feel up to it, that's okay." His eyes darted back to her, the chance hanging in the air. If she didn't want to play, oh well. Roxas would just keep going then.

 

Namine tilted her head to the side slightly, contemplating. "I'll try something, but I can't promise it'll be any good," she warned, a small smile on her lips. She hadn't played for a few days, anyway, so that wasn't going to help her with this. Besides, she'd always sound like an amateur compared to Roxas.

 

Roxas arched an eyebrow. "Okay," he said, though he doubted that. Namine was really good the last time he saw her play. If she'd been playing recently, she couldn't have done anything but improved. He handed the guitar to her over the edge of the bed, keeping his place on the floor.

 

Namine lifted a hand and naturally gripped the neck, lifting it up to her position on the bed. She adjusted it slightly in her lap, making sure that she was comfortable before she began. That alone was comfortable, but she also needed a moment to think of what she could play.

 

Roxas was already turned halfway around, so he lifted his arm next to the bed and rested his elbow on the mattress, leaning his head against his hand. He looked up at Namine, waiting patiently for her to begin a song.

 

Namine took in a breath, her fingers naturally finding the positions of a song she had recently written. She had just perfected it about a week ago, and though it didn't sound the same without her singing, the song on guitar still sounded cool. She started picking the notes, eyes wandering down to the neck as she made the proper chord changes.

 

Roxas listened to the carefully played notes reach him, his eyes wandering from Namine's face to the guitar. His gaze followed her fingers as the notes were heard, the boy listening intently to her play.

 

Namine played through the first half of the song, which in her opinion, was the hardest part due to all the picking. She bit down on her lip in concentration and then struck all the notes a little harder, strumming for the next verse of the song. She hummed it only in her head, feeling too much phlegm in her throat for her to audibly make noise.

 

Roxas vaguely registered that one of his fingers was tapping against his hair to the beat, despite the fact that there wasn't one established by drums. He watched Namine with interest, a very faint smile on his lips at the music entering his ears. She had gotten better.

 

Namine shut her eyes as she strummed through the second verse and into the chorus, becoming more confident as she went along. She always played with her heart, and this song had gotten her through a few dark nights. Once she made it past the chorus again, she slowed down her playing, humming as the words went through her head.

"We cannot separate
You're part of me
And though You're invisible
I'll trust the unseen"

She paused for a second, the silence of the guitar emphasizing the very soft "Yeah,yeah" she sang in the break. She immediately began strumming again, picking up the pace to go through the chorus again.

 

Roxas looked up from the guitar, his eyes falling on Namine's face. He could tell that the song was coming easier to her now, her calm expression giving that away.

 

Namine played through the chorus with confidence, keeping her eyes closed. She furrowed her brows slightly when she missed a chord, but she recovered quickly, playing the last few chords gracefully as she ended the song completely.

 

Roxas's finger was still tapping against his head when he saw the girl before him falter, but he only smiled. And when the strumming came to a halt, the smile only stayed. Namine was too hard on herself, because she was very good.

 

Namine held onto the neck of the guitar but set down the pick on the bed in front of her, bringing up her right hand as she shyly tucked back a bit of hair. She had done fairly well for not practicing for a while, but the song really was incomplete without her singing the lyrics along with it. That was her opinion, anyway.

 

Roxas lifted his head from his hand, his arm coming down to rest on the mattress. "I've never heard you play that before," he said softly. He'd heard her play several songs in the past, but not that one.

 

Namine shook her head slightly and lowered her hand, her bangs coming back down into her eyes slightly. "No," she said, turning her head as she shyly looked at Roxas. "I wrote that pretty recently." It had been a long project; it must have taken about a month before she fully completed it.

 

Roxas smiled a little more. "It's good. I like it," he commented positively, letting her have some feedback. He knew how shy Namine could be; she didn't normally play in front of other people. Of course, Roxas was an exception, and so were Kairi and Sora.