“…And may the future strengthen our friendships as we build new ones. To our new beginning, congratulations, class of 2003.”

After shutting his eyes tightly for a moment to fight back the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes, Zexion waved to his fellow classmates and smiled, silver Valedictorian’s sash dangling proudly from his black graduation gown. The students cheered him on, even those that had picked on him during his time in school, but Zexion’s focus was not on them, but rather on one particular student who was grinning back at him proudly – his best friend, Demyx. Zexion tore his eyes away, not wanting the blond to see the sadness in his eyes. This was supposed to be their happy day.

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“Zexy! Hey Zexy! Your speech was great!” Demyx called out as he pushed past the crowd of crying and hugging eighth graders to catch up to his best friend.

Zexion stopped walking; secretly wishing that Demyx hadn’t spotted him, wishing that he could have just left without the awkward goodbyes, the fake explanations, and the false hopes that they’d see each other again.

“You were great up there, Zexy!” Demyx exclaimed as he nearly tackled the shorter boy in a hug.

Zexion remained silent as he nodded, hesitating before returning the awkward hug. The blond immediately sensed Zexion’s odd behavior and pulled away, peering into his best friend’s face. “Zexy, what’s wrong?”

‘Don’t look at me like that, Demyx. You can’t possibly know how much it’s going to hurt me to say goodbye.’

“My father is waiting outside, Demyx. We’re-”

“Why does your dad suddenly hate me, Zexion? What did I do?”

‘You stirred these feelings inside me, Demyx… feelings that my father came to notice… and despise.’

Zexion didn’t answer his question, and instead looked away, not wanting to see the pain that was sure to be in Demyx’s eyes as he said his next words. “We’re leaving for Radiant Garden tonight. I’m moving, Demyx.”

Demyx blinked, taking a moment to let the words sink in. “What? Moving? Why? I thought we were going to high school together!” He paused, tearing his eyes away from Zexion. “Why did you wait until now to tell me?”

The shorter of the two looked up, taking in Demyx’s form one final time before he turned, muttering softly, “Goodbye Demyx.”

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“Good morning Lexaeus, I’ll have the usual.” It was routine by now. Every morning he had his breakfast at the campus coffeehouse and he could always expect to see his good friend standing behind the counter, radiating warmth and kindness despite his statuesque size. They had met during freshman composition and formed a pleasant sort of camaraderie, much to Zexion’s surprise, for he had spent all four years of high school slinking around the hallways like a shadow, a mere illusion to the other students until graduation day. Zexion was, of course, named valedictorian.

Lexaeus later introduced Zexion to Xigbar, Xaldin, and Vexen, who also became friends of his. They all turned out having Calculus I and II together freshman year.

“Hello, Zexion. How was your summer?” the tall man made small talk as he prepared a medium hazelnut coffee with milk and sugar.

Fishing into his messenger bag for his wallet, Zexion gave a slight nod, the corners of his lips quirking up into a ghost of a smile. He wouldn’t admit that he had had a fight with his father and had threatened to run off in search of the boy with whom he was still in love. “Pleasant. I found quite a few good novels to read over the summer. Yours?”

Lexaeus ducked under the counter to pull out a white chocolate macadamia cookie, one of Zexion’s little guilty pleasures, and proceeded to ring up his total. “It was interesting. I went camping with Xaldin and Xigbar. Quite the accident Xigbar had. I don’t think even Vexen could’ve fixed him up this time.”

“Oh?” Zexion quirked an eyebrow, interested. Xigbar, a physics major, had an odd habit of hanging upside down from things, along with various other “gravity-defying” stunts, from window ledges to high tree branches, which almost always ended up costing him a short trip to the campus’s doctor’s office, where Vexen worked part-time. By the end of freshman year, Vexen, being a pre-med major, had treated more of Xigbar’s wounds than the doctor had.

“Let’s just say… Don’t be surprised if you see Xigbar walking around with an eye patch from now on,” Lexaeus answered, turning to tend to the next customer who had walked in.

Zexion smirked, shaking his head, and made his way to his usual spot, a light blue plush couch near the back wall of the mint green room, next to the opening in the wall that led to the conjoined campus library.

Zexion’s favorite thing about the coffeehouse had to be the color combinations. Aside from the mint green being naturally soothing to the eye, the mix of blue and green reminded him of a certain pair of ocean-colored orbs that never failed to appear in his dreams, enticing him to return to the place where he was forced to leave his love behind.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Zexion breathed in the heavenly scent of freshly brewed coffee and the morning air seeping in through the half-open windows, his second favorite thing about the coffeehouse.

“Hey short dude!” a voice interrupted his thoughts and Zexion cracked an eye open to peer up at one bright lemon yellow eye, the other hidden behind an eye patch.

“Ah, good morning Xigbar,” Zexion greeted in reply, ignoring the dreaded nickname Xigbar had dubbed him.

“You’re not surprised? Let me guess, Lexaeus already told you?” Xigbar asked, plopping down beside Zexion with a light thump.

Zexion, amused, flashed Xigbar a light smirk. “Of course. Everyone always knows about your daring exploits before you can proudly display your acquired scars. You should be aware of this by now.”

“Riiight… So what do you think about the new Arts and Music program they set up here?”

“Excuse me?”

Xigbar blinked in shock for a moment before wheeling on him. “Dude, can it be?! Something our little bookworm hasn’t read up on?”

Letting out a sigh of exasperation, Zexion took a sip of his coffee, waiting for Xigbar to continue.

“You haven’t noticed the new dorm house and the bunch of transfer students we got?”

“Xigbar, it’s only the first day, and unlike you, I don’t particularly enjoy eavesdropping or sticking my nose in other people’s business.”

Xigbar paused, staring at Zexion as he picked away at his cookie, savoring the white chocolate bits in his mouth. “You won’t stick your nose in other people’s business but you can tell what people had for lunch by sniffing them?”

Zexion frowned, glancing at him from the corner of his eye. “My acute sense of smell and your busybody tendencies are two entirely different things, Xigbar. And I do not sniff people.”

“Whatever. My point is we have a crapload of new students and a lot of them are girls.”

“I fail to see your point.”

“One of them could be a potential girlfriend for you, dude.”

Zexion set his cookie down, already feeling uncomfortable with the conversation. He had made it quite clear to his companions that he wasn’t interested in a relationship and that they should never pester him about it, nor ask why. For one, they didn’t know he was gay, and if he brought up Demyx he knew it would bring an onslaught of unwanted questions from Xigbar and some secret meddling on Lexaeus’s part to seek out Demyx and bring him to Zexion.

“Xigbar, before you attempt to shove me into the arms of some pop star wannabe female, perhaps you should get your own girlfriend. I don’t particularly need nor want one.”

“Dude, the reason I don’t have a girlfriend is because I actually don’t need one right now. I’m a physics major! I’ll get all the girls I want later on, but you, Mr. “I sniff people and make them uncomfortable by psychoanalyzing them” need a real relationship before you end up heartless and lonely, trapped under a pile of books for the rest of your life.”

“I do not sniff people!” Zexion hissed, repeating himself for the second time.

“Riiight, anyways…” Xigbar continued rambling, annoying Zexion to no end. He had to find a way to change the subject and he had to find it soon.

“Short dude, are you even listening?” Xigbar’s visible eye suddenly widened, as if some sort of realization had finally dawned on him. “Zexion, are you pitching for the other team?”

Zexion quirked an eyebrow, mouth frozen in mid-bite. Reluctantly pulling the cookie of his mouth, Zexion turned to glare at his golden-eyed friend. “Excuse me?”

“Don’t play dumb, Zexion, it doesn’t suit you, and you know what I’m talking about.”

That was it. Zexion had to change the subject now. Pretending to look around, he asked, “Where’s Vexen? Shouldn’t he be trailing you to make sure you don’t take out your other eye?”

Xigbar, successfully distracted much to Zexion’s relief, waved a hand and shook his head. “Nah, you know Vexen’s pretty much the back-up doctor here, so he’s scoping out the transfers to take note of anyone he’ll see often, like accident prone people-”

‘Like you?’ Zexion muttered under his breath.

“-or people with serious allergy issues. Dude, is that one of those giant cookies you’re eating? I’m gonna go get me one.” Xigbar hopped to his feet and headed to the counter to buy a cookie and start up a conversation with Lexaeus.

Zexion let out a long sigh of relief, savoring the last piece of his cookie as he popped it into his mouth, mentally thanking said cookie for practically saving his ass.

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A tall lanky sophomore with porcupine-like hair the color of fire huffed as he reached the top of the stairs, setting down the large box he was carrying. “Roxas, what the hell is in this box? Damn, don’t tell me your cousin decided to hide himself in a box again to get a free ride up the stairs…”

“Hey! I only did that once!” Sora hissed, leaning against the doorway with a glare that looked more like a pout.

“Sora! Quit blocking the doorway before I accidentally knock your boyfriend down the stairs! You know I’ll do it!” Sora’s blond cousin shouted behind him, pushing him into the hallway. “Uh, Axel, that’s not my box.”

The redhead blinked, glancing down at the box as if it would suddenly explode.

“Thanks Axel!” another blond quipped, emerging from the third door on the right side of the hallway to push the large box into the room.

“Damn it Demyx, carry your own crap!” Axel sent him a threatening glare, smacking him over the head as he walked into the triple room they shared, Roxas following close behind.

“Ow! Axel!” Demyx exclaimed with a slight whimper.

“About damn time! Man, you people can hold up a line! Someone grab my bag before it slides off my arm!” Larxene snapped, helping Marluxia carry a 27” flat-screen TV down the boys’ hall toward the girls’ hall.

The trio of Axel, Roxas and Demyx poked their heads out into the hall and finally decided to follow them, Demyx grabbing Larxene’s bag before it hit the TV. They turned the corner and walked into the eleventh room of the girls’ hallway, where a flowery adorned sheet of paper taped to the door announced that this was ‘Marluxia and Laxene’s’ room.

“Why the hell are you two sharing a room?” Axel asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Larxene has boobs, so we know she’s a girl, and Marly doesn’t have boobs, so we know he’s a guy-”

“Your point?!” Marluxia interrupted with a scowl, setting the TV down with Larxene.

“I thought guys and girls weren’t allowed to share a room,” Demyx replied, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

“Oh, that’s simple.” Larxene’s previously pissed off expression did a complete 180, the familiar evil glint in her eye returning. “We were one of the last few to get registered for housing, so when the time came to assign us one of the leftover rooms, they completely ignored Mar-Mar’s file, took one quick look at him, thought he was a girl, and stuck him in my room.”

Roxas rolled his eyes. “Morons.”

“Move aside! Coming through! Assistant doctor here! Did anybody not hand in their medical files?” shrieked an angry voice, its owner pushing through the line of students trying to get into the girls’ hall, nearly knocking over Kairi and Naminé in the process.

Marluxia poked his head out into the hall, a devilish grin slowly spreading across his features as the tall screeching blond swept past him. “Larxy, I think I’ve found my new stalkee…”

Roxas looked up at him with a scowl, blue eyes boring holes into his back. “Marluxia, I swear if you go anywhere near Naminé again, I’ll-”

The pink haired man waved a hand dismissively, not bothering to look back at the threatening glare Roxas was attempting to kill him with. “Yeah, yeah, you made your point when you nearly bashed my head in with that giant key thing Naminé made for you in her ceramics class last year. Larxene, come look!”

“Hmm?” Snapping her head toward him in interest, the blonde female strode over and peered over Marluxia’s shoulder, taking in the sight of Vexen marching down the hall, poking his head into random rooms, eliciting a few shouts of surprise from the girls inside.

“Why, he looks like an absolute nerd!” Larxene exclaimed in approval, patting Marluxia’s shoulder. “He’ll be deliciously fun to torture.”

“You guys are horrible!” Demyx chided behind them, peering around them both to take a quick peek at the so called nerd.

“Demyx, you forget who you’re talking to. These two live to make people miserable. Got it memorized?” Axel walked out of the room, pulling a still slightly fuming Roxas along by the hand.

“I mean it, Marluxia. One fucking step near her and I’ll shish-kabob you. And she gave Sora a keyblade too, so don’t think he won’t go after you too!” Roxas growled, letting the redhead drag him along down the hallway back toward their room.

“Guys, wait up!” Demyx called out, sprinting after them.

Ignoring them as they left, Marluxia turned, flashing a mischievous grin to his partner in crime before he sauntered off down the hall, following Vexen.

…

The blond continued down the hall, shoving a girl with a bad case of the sniffles into her room and slamming the door behind her. Of course, he didn’t care that a few of her suitcases were still outside in the hall.

Suddenly, he jumped with a yelp as someone behind him pinched his butt. “What the hell?!” He wheeled around to glare fiercely at whoever had invaded his personal space, meeting piercing blue eyes hidden within a shockingly bright mass of vibrant pink hair.

Marluxia grinned up at him, extending his hand. “I’m Marluxia. Others call me Marly or Mar-Mar, but you may call me sexy. And don’t let the pink hair fool you. I’m more of a man than many of the guys around here.”

Vexen stared at him for a moment before his eye began twitching almost violently.

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A few days later, Zexion stepped out of his dorm hall, sliding his bag over his shoulder with a calm sigh, and began walking down a path that would lead him to his first class that day. It was a particularly nice day, warm, and a sort of remnant of the summer that had just passed. Thus, Zexion decided to leave a few minutes earlier so he could take the time to enjoy the campus around him.

His peaceful walk was short lived, however. As he turned the corner at the end of the library, someone barreled into him, nearly knocking him over. Zexion grabbed hold of the wall and sighed in relief as he regained his balance, turning to give a mouthful to the one who had almost knocked him over. Zexion was notorious for criticizing those without manners. But when he looked up, the boy was already sprinting away, failing to acknowledge Zexion’s existence.

The slate-haired student glared at the other’s retreating back, taking note of the oddly styled dirty blonde hair, the white t-shirt with a shimmering blue clef symbol on the back, the worn-out black guitar case, and the sky blue messenger bag, almost every inch of it covered in buttons.

‘…Stereotypical music student,’ Zexion thought. For a school that up until now had been only for scientists, philosophers and engineers, he thought the new art and music students would have been a bit subtler assimilating. Zexion frowned once more before shaking his head and continuing on his walk to his first class of the day, hoping he’d never have to run into the blond again, literally.

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Zexion did his best to keep out of the way of the new transfer students, sticking to his books and his small select group of friends, all of which were scientists in some way. He could no longer delay the inevitable though, so when Xigbar, being as friendly and as nosy as he is, came over with his arm slung over a petite blonde’s shoulders, Zexion was not surprised. He had been calmly sitting in the coffeehouse after his shift at the library had ended, reading a large tome from his personal collection when Xigbar practically dragged the girl over.

Said girl glanced at Zexion and smiled warmly, but Zexion noticed she was gripping onto her sketchbook for dear life. Xigbar grinned down at him, either oblivious to the obvious awkwardness or he simply didn’t care, taking the initiative and introducing the two.

“Shorty, this is Namine. Namine, this is our resident bookworm. This kid eats, drinks, and breathes books, but he’s a stickler for manners, so be nice to him and he’ll be nice to you.”

“It’s Zexion,” Zexion corrected, flashing Xigbar a look before looking back at Namine, offering a sympathetic smile and a handshake. “Hello, Namine.”

Namine, feeling a bit less awkward, took his hand and shook it, smiling much more confidently, her grip loosening a bit on her sketchbook.

“Xigbar didn’t kidnap you, did he? He has a bad habit of doing that, along with hanging from high places, eavesdropping, and appearing unexpectedly.”

Namine chuckled, shaking her head. “No, he nicely introduced himself before saying he had a…” She hesitated for a moment before continuing, directly quoting Xigbar, “…‘cute single friend in desperate need of a girlfriend’ and then brought me over to meet you.”

Zexion turned his attention to a sudden giggle from two tables away. A red haired girl watched them with the look of someone who watched too many soap operas or read one too many romance novels. Zexion surmised she must have been a friend of Namine’s or some sort, though she looked more like a sister or a cousin, and turned his attention back to the blonde and his busybody, eye patch wearing friend.

“It was nice meeting you, Namine, but I currently possess no interest in pursuing a romantic relationship with anyone. Please forgive me for my friend’s prying.” Zexion flashed Xigbar a fierce glare before once again smiling sympathetically at Namine for having to deal with Xigbar.

The three didn’t notice a blond boy walk in, followed by a very noticeable tall redhead.

“Yo, Roxy, looks like Namine’s making some new friends,” Axel pointed out, nodding toward the couch at the back of the room.

“What?” Roxas looked up and frowned upon seeing Xigbar’s arm slung around his best female friend’s shoulders. Even though he and Axel were dating, he was overly protective of Namine, considering how Marluxia had had a habit of stalking her all throughout high school. Axel never questioned it, so when Roxas decided to march over to the trio in the back, Axel simply followed, digging out his cell phone to chat with Demyx.

Namine smiled at Zexion. “It’s no problem at all. It was nice meeting you t-”

Xigbar blinked as someone suddenly swiped Namine out from under him. He turned to face a pair of fierce blue eyes, glaring at him. Zexion raised an eyebrow, watching the scene before him.

No one noticed the redhead in the background. “Yo, Dem, we’re at the coffee place. Want anything? What? Okay. See ya.” He snapped his cell phone shut and looked up, sensing Roxas’s fury rolling off his shoulders, and stepped in, grinning brightly.

Namine sighed, tugging on Roxas’s arm. “Roxas, I’m okay. Xigbar’s nice. He was just introducing me to Zexion.”

“Whoa, little dude, I’m sorry, is she your girlfriend or something? I didn’t mean any harm.” Xigbar casually stated, trying to lighten the mood.

Zexion rolled his eyes and shook his head, turning back to the book in his lap.

Roxas turned to look at him, glare back in full force. “What the hell’s your problem?”

“Now, now, Roxy, just because you’re shorter than his IQ, doesn’t mean you should be impolite, got it memorized?” Axel cut in, ruffling the blond’s hair.

Roxas snarled and elbowed the redhead, knocking the wind out of him. “Shut up. Come on, Namine.” He walked off and Namine followed with a sigh, waving at Xigbar and Zexion.

Axel rubbed his stomach, coughing a bit before he turned to follow Roxas. “Hey, wait up! Demyx wants a muffin!”

Zexion’s eyes snapped up at the name, a name he hadn’t heard in years. Was it possible that his best friend from long ago was attending the same school? No, it couldn’t be. Classes began over three weeks ago. Surely he would have seen the overly-energetic blond with the unmistakable oceanic eyes. He must have simply imagined it.

Xigbar interrupted his thoughts, “So what did you think? Cute, wasn’t she? There’s bound to be other cute ones like her, dude.”

Zexion sighed. “Xigbar, how many times must I tell you that I am not interested in dating at the moment?”

Xigbar was about to open his mouth to speak when Vexen rushed by, shouting angrily. “Marluxia, leave me the hell alone!”

“You know you want me!” his pink-haired follower called out as he chased after him, sweeping past Xigbar and Zexion, who stared at the pair, wondering what that was about.

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“You can’t protect Namine forever you know,” Axel casually mentioned a few days later while he was playing Ultimate Struggle 2 with Roxas. Demyx was out for some class and wouldn’t be back for a while.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” the blond mumbled, furiously mashing the buttons on his controller in an attempt to kick Axel’s ass in the game.

“I mean that…” Axel frowned, putting his controller down when Roxas made the finishing blow. “Namine’s a pretty girl and you can’t shield her away from men for the rest of her life, even if you can bash people’s heads in with that keyblade of yours.”

“I still don’t get what you’re talking about,” Roxas retorted stubbornly, hopping off the bed and heading to the fridge to pull out a bottle of water.

Axel shot a look at him from the floor where he sat. “You know what I mean, Roxas. It’s not like Marluxia’s stalking her anymore and Namine’s a big girl. She can take care of herself.”

“You just don’t get it,” Roxas replied with a frown, turning away. “You weren’t there when she came to me after her father died four years ago. Sora and I, we promised we’d take care of her.”

“Yeah, but Rox, you can’t take care of her forever. You’re not her dad.”

“SHUT UP!” the blond furiously snapped, glaring angrily at his boyfriend.

Axel blinked, a bit taken aback by Roxas’s reaction, but he stood and walked over to pull the other into a warm embrace. “Roxas, you know I didn’t mean anything by that.”

“…Yeah…” was all Roxas could mumble, relaxing into Axel’s arms.

The redhead cupped Roxas’s cheek, tugging his head up. “I know you care about Namine. Just ease up a little. What am I supposed to do if you’ve got a stick up your ass?”

Roxas rolled his eyes. “Oh shut up, you jerk.”

At this Axel grinned and leaned down to capture Roxas’s soft lips with his own, the blond eagerly submitting to Axel’s warm touch.

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Vexen was diligently and happily working on a take-home quiz for his biology recitation class in a corner of the library when he felt a presence behind him. Slowly turning in his seat to face the person, he gasped as said person suddenly leaned over him, pinning him against the table.

“…M-Marluxia!!” Vexen barked, trapped between the other male and the table.

“Mm, yes Vexen?” Marluxia whispered, looming over him, eyes half-lidded and voice husky.

“Remove yourself from me immediately!” the blond hissed, struggling to slip away from Marluxia’s firm hold.

“Oh, Vexen, when are we going to stop playing this silly game? I know we’ve only known each other for a month now, but it’s obvious you can’t stand to be away from me.”

“Are you out of your mind?!? You’re the one who keeps following me! Now let me go!” Vexen growled, shifting around in an attempt to knee Marluxia where it would hurt.

Marluxia finally relented and pulled away with a dramatic sigh. “I guess I’ll just have to keep waiting for the day when you finally confess your love for me.”

Vexen quickly gathered his things, turning to give Marluxia one of his fiercest glares. “I don’t know why you’re so fixated on me, but the day I fall for you will be the day I spontaneously combust!” Vexen left with that, seething all the way to his dorm room, one he shared with a silver-haired, amber-eyed student obsessed with studying hearts and who spent quite a large amount of time staring at the moon with his lemon-yellow-eyed, blue-haired boyfriend.

“…That can be arranged,” Marluxia mumbled to himself with a mischievous grin once Vexen was out of sight.

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“Can someone think of a movie with an example of really great scenery?” Kairi piped up as she frowned down at her notebook, which was full of almost incomprehensible scribbles. The group of Axel, Roxas, Sora, Riku, Kairi, and Demyx sat in a circle in the dorm’s lounge, working on homework together.

“Wouldn’t Namine know?” Sora asked, looking around.

Axel idly flicked a cheese puff at his head, furiously copying Demyx’s Music Composition class notes. Demyx always had the best notes when it came to music, of course. “She’s not here.”

“David Bowie!” Demyx called out, smiling at Kairi.

“What?” she asked, confused as to what he meant, since his comment was obviously directed at her.

“David Bowie!” the blond repeated eagerly.

“…Demyx, David Bowie is not a movie…” Roxas muttered bitingly, annoyed with his homework.

“Fine, Labyrinth then,” Demyx corrected, not looking up from his notebook. He waited to turn the page as soon as Axel finished copying.

“Mm, that works, thanks Demyx!” Kairi quickly scribbled it down and began writing the short paragraph that gave the reason for her choice.

“What is it with you and David Bowie?” Riku asked, peering over Sora’s shoulder to make sure the brunet was doing his homework. Sora wasn’t stupid, but he had a tendency to drift off into space every now and then.

“I love David Bowie! I love everything David Bowie! Bowieism should be a religion! I’d follow it.”

“You’d be the only follower, Demyx,” Axel mocked, stuffing a few cheese puffs into his mouth.

Before the conversation could continue, Roxas interrupted, asking, “Where is Namine anyway?”

“Remember that guy with the eye patch?” Axel began.

“Is he the one who was hanging upside down from a tree yesterday?” Kairi interrupted, looking up momentarily before turning back to her homework.

“Yeah. He conned Namine,” Axel began to say, but quickly rephrased himself upon seeing the look on Roxas’s face “err, convinced her into going on a date with that blue-haired kid, what’s his face.” Axel answered, scribbling down more notes.

“Zexion?” Roxas asked, all murderous intent fading away. Namine had assured him that Zexion was nothing but polite and friendly.

“Yeah. Hey, Dem, you can turn the page now.” Axel waited, but the hand holding the page had stilled. “Dem?” Axel glanced up, peering into Demyx’s face. The blond seemed to have been frozen, his fingers still curled around a page of his notebook, but unmoving. The soft, almost melodic scribble of his pencil as he was doing homework was now silent. Those aqua colored eyes were glued to one spot, almost unblinking.

“…Demyx, you okay?” Roxas asked, and everyone instantly looked up in response, knowing that nothing ever shook up Demyx.

“Did you say Zexion?” Demyx asked, finally looking up to meet Roxas’s gaze, his face deadly serious, a sight that alarmed the group of friends sitting around him.

“Yeah… Why?” Roxas asked, staring at him with a bit of concern. Did Demyx know Zexion?

Demyx lowered his pencil and handed his notebook to Axel before rising. “Um, I’m gonna go grab some juice. See you guys later.” With that, he left the circle and made his way out of the dorm hall, sprinted outside, and just kept running.

“What was that about?” Sora asked when Demyx had completely left them.

“Who knows?” Axel said with a shrug, mildly relieved that Demyx had left him his notebook.

…

Demyx stopped running after a while, pausing to catch his breath. He slumped down onto the grass, staring up at the sunny blue sky. ‘Zexion’s… here? We’ve been going to the same school for over a month now? Why haven’t I seen him? …I wonder if he knows I’m here… He couldn’t be avoiding me, right? He didn’t seem so sad when he left me after graduation.’ Demyx sighed, grabbing a fistful of his hair.

“I gotta see him!” he cried, heaving himself up into a sitting position. “…But where the hell am I supposed to find him?!” He stood, letting out a cry of frustration. He was about to turn and head back to his dorm when he realized what building he was facing.

“The library, duh!” With his newfound resolve, Demyx dashed towards the library, trying hard to be sneaky as he slipped inside.

…

It turned out Zexion worked at the library’s main desk with two other undergraduates, so it barely took Demyx any time at all to find him. He slipped into a small nook where he was sure Zexion could not see him and watched the slate haired young man give directions to an obviously new student. As soon as the student left, Zexion sat, picking up a large book that was in front of him and continued reading it.

A sad sense of nostalgia ran though Demyx as he watched his former best friend immersed in what he always loved. ‘Zexy, you haven’t changed.’ The soft slate colored hair that Demyx had always wanted to touch still fell over half of his face, concealing one of the deep blue eyes that held so much intelligence and wisdom for someone so young.

Zexion had grown a bit since Demyx had last seen him. Although he hadn’t changed much height-wise, he wasn’t quite so scrawny anymore. The blue polo he was wearing concealed a mildly-built frame, skin still pale and smooth. Demyx tore his eyes away, knowing he shouldn’t stare, knowing there was the possibility they may never be friends again, and knowing that even if they were, it could never be anything more than that. ‘Axel said Namine was dating him, right?’

When Zexion left immediately after their eighth grade graduation, Demyx was sure the only reason he was sad was because Zexion had been his best and only friend. They had both been outsiders, finding refuge and solace within each other. When Zexion left, Demyx lost his only companion. Then high school came, and he easily bonded with Axel and Roxas, and then eventually the others. But no matter how much fun he had with the others, no matter how much he shared with Axel and Roxas, something was still missing and he sometimes felt like the third-wheel.

He had even attempted to date Namine a handful of times during their high school years, but he couldn’t feel a spark between them. A spark, he soon realized, that he had only felt with Zexion. So even with Zexion’s absence and the high chance that Demyx would never see him again, he fell in love with the boy, and continued to love him even though he was nothing more than a passing dream now and then.

“Zexion…” Demyx whispered with a sigh, running a hand though his hair. He slipped out of his little corner and quietly made his way out of the library, unseen by the recipient of his affections.

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Vexen sighed as he signed out a student who had recently healed from a mild fever, and pulled his hair back into a ponytail. It was oddly warm for a day in November, but he paid no mind and put away the student’s file before taking a glance into the waiting room where he spotted a blonde female heavily focused on filing her nails.

“Hello, may I help you?” Vexen asked, gesturing for her to come over. Something about the young woman made him uneasy, but he brushed it off. He figured she must be one of the new art or music students.

“Mm? Yeah,” she mumbled, and stood, taking her sweet time to walk over, which only served to irritate Vexen.

“May I help you?” Vexen repeated through clenched teeth.

The girl laid her arms on the counter, grinning at him. “Name’s Larxene. I hear Marluxia’s giving you some trouble.”

Vexen growled at the mention of the pink-haired man’s name, which made Larxene inwardly dance with glee. ‘Oh, Marly, you picked a good one.’

“Ahhh, so he has been misbehaving a bit…” she muttered, her grin widening.

“A bit?! I have never been so violated in my entire life! He stalks me from morning to night and has completely invaded my personal space! He is terribly rude and highly inappropriate and absolutely refuses to leave me alone!”

“Aww, poor little… Vexen,” she cooed, faking a glance toward the nametag on his doctor assistant’s coat since she already knew his name.

“Don’t tell me you’re here to torment me too!” Vexen snarled in response to her demeaning tone.

“Oh, no, no, no!” Larxene exclaimed, waving her hand in the air. She put her arm back down and the grin on her face was back in full force. “I’m here with a proposition.”

“…A proposition?”

“Mmhmm. See, among our little group of friends, I’m the one who keeps Marly in check, make sure he doesn’t harass innocent people,” she lied, flashing Vexen a convincing grin. “So, how would you like me to keep Marluxia off your case?”

“…What’s the catch?” Vexen asked, not so easily fooled by Larxene’s plastic smile.
Larxene ‘s laugh reverberated off the walls, screeching in Vexen’s ears. “Oh, no catch, Vexy-poo,” Vexen’s eye twitched at this, “but I can’t keep him away from you while I’m in class, of course, and I do require a small fee for my services.”

“A fee? I thought you said you kept him in check!”

Another high-pitched laugh rang in Vexen’s ears. “I didn’t say I did it for free!”
The doctor’s assistant growled, glaring at her fiercely.

Larxene crossed her and arms while her jovial attitude disappeared, replaced by an intimidating stare. “Think about it. What’s worse: giving up a bit of munny or being harassed in every possible way for the rest of your time at this school?”

When Vexen said nothing, merely staring back at her for a while, Larxene turned, scoffing. “Have it your way. I guess you really don’t mind having Marluxia stalk you and sexually harass you for the next three years.”

Her words echoed in Vexen’s mind for the few seconds it took her to cross the waiting room to reach the door. ’…for the next three years…’

“…How much?” he finally asked when her hand touched the doorknob. A smirk that rivaled Marluxia’s own made its way across her lips and stayed there for a moment before she turned to face the exceptionally tall blond, an overly-friendly smile on her face.

“Good answer. Let’s negotiate, shall we?”

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Demyx and Axel made their way across campus after their last afternoon music class that day, passing by the small coffeehouse on their way to their dorm.

“Hm?” Axel suddenly stopped, a flyer posted on the door to the coffeehouse catching his eye. “Hey, Dem, look at this, the school’s having its first ever Open Mic.”

Demyx’s ears perked up at this and he practically hopped over to look at the sheet of paper. “Open Mic, huh?”

Their previous school had held Open Mic events every month and the trio of Demyx (guitar and vocals), Axel (bass guitar), and Roxas (vocals and sometimes keyboard) were the favorite.

“So, how about it, Demyx? Want me to convince Roxas to let us play that song he wrote over the summer? ‘Bleeding Love’ I think he named it. (1) Um, Demyx?”

Something else had caught Demyx’s eye, past the flyer on the glass door and inside the coffeehouse. It was Zexion, lounging on the back couch of the coffeehouse with a fairly large book in his hands, a look of absolute calm on his face. He was so serene, so beautiful; Demyx wouldn’t have been able to look away had it not been for Axel’s constant prodding.

“Yoohoo, Earth to Demyx!”

Finally turning away from the blue-haired bookworm, Demyx smiled at Axel, shaking his head. “No, I think I’m gonna do something by myself this time. Hope you don’t mind.”

Axel, a bit confused, scratched the back of his head and watched as Demyx turned and ran off toward their dorm hall. ‘Hmm… I should still try to con Roxy into singing that song.’ His trademark feral grin snapped into place on his face and he walked off to find his blond boyfriend.

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“So how much did you get out of him?” Marluxia asked when Larxene strolled into their room, holding a sac of munny.

“1000. He’s really desperate to get rid of you.” She laughed, digging into the sac and tossing Marluxia his half.

“I guess I have to ease off a bit with the stalking, huh,” he stated with a grin.

“Oh, only for a few weeks… Then he finds out I forgot to mention I take a monthly fee.”

There were a few seconds of silence before the two burst into laughter, celebrating their crazy scheme.

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“Hey, Dem, I’ve been meaning to ask you something…”Axel started one day a week or so later.

Demyx was sitting on his bed, practicing a few chords on his beloved sitar, an instrument he played just as frequently as his guitar. Roxas and Namine were in the room as well. Roxas was posing for a drawing project Namine was working on.

Demyx didn’t look up, slowing his playing a bit to let Axel speak. “Hm?”

“Who’s Zexion?”

Demyx’s hands stilled on his instrument and he looked up at his friend, confused by the question. “What do you mean?”

“Who’s Zexion?” Axel repeated.

“Um, I dunno,” Demyx mumbled, returning his attention to his sitar. He had never told anyone about Zexion and he had no idea how his name could have possibly come up.

“You don’t know? It seemed like you did when you ran away that day I said his name,” Roxas interjected, glancing over with a slight frown. Namine had set her large sketchbook down, finally done with her project for that week.

“What? Oh. I told you, I went to go get juice,” Demyx replied a bit defensively.

“Dem, you didn’t come back for 3 hours. It doesn’t take 3 hours to get juice unless you go to another state to get it,” Axel retorted, flashing Demyx an incredulous look.

“Well, maybe I did go to another state,” Demyx shot back, sticking his tongue out while plucking another chord.

“Demyx, come on, seriously, you know the guy.”

Demyx frowned, not wanting to answer. He paused and looked up when he felt a pair of hands cover his own over his sitar. He met Namine’s worried look.

“What is it, Demyx? You can tell us, right?” she asked, giving him one of her sweet smiles. He couldn’t refuse answering her. He sighed, setting his sitar down and looking up at the trio that stared back at him.

“Zexy… Zexion and I were best friends back in elementary school. I didn’t have a lot of friends back then like I did in high school with you guys. It was just me and Zexion. The day of our eighth grade graduation, he told me he was leaving and then he was gone. I mean, at least he said goodbye, but… I wonder if he missed me. …If he still misses me…” Demyx sighed, staring into his lap.

Axel frowned, turning to Namine. “You should find a way to bring Dem’s name up on your next date.”

The blonde girl blinked at this. “Date?” She suddenly chuckled, shaking her head. “Oh, we’re not dating Axel, we’re just friends.”

Demyx’s head shot up. “You’re not dating?” Namine shook her head in confirmation and Demyx’s stomach did a summersault. Now all he needed was to find out Zexion was gay or at least bisexual.

“You should still bring Dem’s name up in conversation or something,” Axel commented.

“NO!” Demyx interrupted, flailing his arms around frantically. “Please don’t.”

Roxas looked at him, raising an eyebrow in question. “Why not?”

“I have my own plan to get his attention…” Demyx trailed off, leaving his three friends curious.

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It was a Friday night in early December when the campus’s first Open Mic night opened, emceed by a blue eyed second year student with short blond hair, a handful of piercings, and a british accent that made a few girls swoon.

Zexion had been working at the library, so when he walked into the coffeehouse after his shift ended, the first batch of performers had already been up and the place was starting to become a bit crowded. He paid no mind to it, however, and looked around for an available seat, finally settling on the couch beside the counter.

The lights had been dimmed, so there was no chance for anyone to read in there, but Zexion was there more out of curiosity. Open Mic Night was something new and with the influx of music students, there was bound to be at least a few talented students in the mix.

Since he was so conveniently close to the counter, he asked Lexaeus for a peppermint tea, paid for it, and lay back on the couch, calmly listening to whoever was playing at the moment since he couldn’t see over the crowd to catch a glimpse of whoever was singing.

“…And it’s draining all of me. Oh they find it hard to believe. I’ll be wearing these scars for everyone to see… ‘Cause I don’t care what they say, I’m in love with you. They try to pull me away, but they don’t know the truth. My heart’s crippled by the vein that I keep on closing. Oh, you cut me open and I…”
Whoever was singing wasn’t half bad, Zexion decided. It was actually much better than he had expected. The boy was most likely a music student.

…

Loud clapping and cheering, with the occasional whistle, resounded through the small space of the coffeehouse when the song finished.

Roxas gave a curt bow and proceeded to grab Axel’s arm, tugging the redhead off the makeshift stage as he grumbled silently. “I can’t believe you made me do that…”

“Aww, but they loved you, Roxy!” Axel protested, giving a final wave to the audience as Roxas practically yanked him into the crowd, letting Luxord go up to announce the next performer.

“Let’s have another hand for Roxas and Axel!” Another wave of clapping and cheering burst out in the room and Luxord soon waved a hand to quiet everyone down.

“Our next performer would like to be anonymous,” he began, smooth British accent earning a few admiring giggles from the crowd, “but he’s a second year student, studying music here at Radiant Garden University. Let’s give him a round of applause.”

“Guys, I can’t do this!” Demyx started freaking, turning to his group of friends.

“You wanted to do this alone,” Larxene stated matter-of-factly with a smirk.

“Dem, what are you talking about? You’ve been practicing nonstop for weeks now, so go do this surprise thing you’ve been keeping us all in the dark about before Roxas smacks you,” Axel stated with a grin.

The small bit of applause that began soon grew as those who recognized the blond guitar player saw Demyx stumble onto the stage after being none too gently pushed by Axel.

Demyx nervously cleared his throat, quickly surveying the crowd for any sign of his slate-haired crush. He sighed, unable to see much past the first two rows of heads, and took a seat on the stool that was set, placing his sitar in his lap and pulling the microphone a bit closer.

“Hey guys,” he began “this song… This song is dedicated to someone I thought I’d lost forever, but… I hope he’ll come back to me, so here goes.”

The blond’s fingers started to move along the strings of the sitar (2). Until that night, the only ones who had ever heard Demyx play the sitar were Axel, Roxas, Namine, and Zexion.

…

Zexion paused, lowering his tea from his lips. ‘That voice… and… a sitar?’

A male voice soon accompanied the music, a voice that held both warmth and longing, a voice that Zexion could never forget. “Oceans apart day after day, and I slowly go insane. I hear your voice on the line, but it doesn't stop the pain...”

Zexion shot up from his seat, hissing slightly as the hot tea in his hands spilled all over him.  “Demyx,” he whispered, discarding the remainder of his tea in the nearby trash bin, completely disregarding his now wet shirt.

“If I see you next to never, how can we say forever? Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be right here waiting for you. Whatever it takes, or how my heart breaks, I will be right here waiting for you…”

That voice was unmistakably Demyx’s, Zexion was sure of it. He silently cursed his limited height as he desperately tried to peer over the crowd to catch a glimpse of the makeshift stage. But it had been far too long since he had last seen the blond he had fallen in love with, and Zexion was determined to make his wait come to an end. Frantically looking around for some way to slip through or around the crowd, his gaze finally settled on the coffee shop’s counter, behind which Lexaeus was sitting. Not caring that it was so out of character for him, he pushed himself up onto the counter and stood up, allowing him to peer over the crowd and effectively surprise Lexaeus.

“I took for granted, all the times, that I thought would last somehow. I hear the laughter, I taste the tears, but I can't get near you now. Oh, can't you see it baby. You've got me goin' crazy…”

“Zexion, what are you doing?” He asked, standing to pull his friend off the counter. “You can’t stand there. Get down.”

“Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be right here waiting for you. Whatever it takes, or how my heart breaks, I will be right here waiting for you…”

“I have to see him,” the slate-haired student mumbled as if in a daze, wanting to get closer to have a better look. Ignoring Lexaeus’s whispered demands to get down, Zexion made his way to the edge of the counter and climbed down, landing somewhere a bit closer to his stage, but still behind a handful of people.

…

Demyx’s fingers danced expertly along the strings of the sitar and the music began to gradually swell as he reached a climactic moment in the lyrics.  “I wonder how we can survive… this romance… but in the end, if I'm with you… I'll take the chance…” His voice rose on that last note, resonating in the air for a moment before fading away as he continued with a sitar solo.

…

Completely throwing all regard for manners out the metaphorical window, Zexion started to push through the crowd, mumbling the occasional ‘excuse me’ as he managed to slip through four or five people, ignoring the hissed whispers of ‘hey, what the hell, quit pushing, jerk.’

“Oh, can't you see it baby. You've got me goin' crazy…”

Only two more people stood in his way and with one final forceful shove, he burst through the crowd, falling over and landing on the floor in front of the stage.

Glancing up, his eyes widened as he recognized the unforgettable haircut of the student who had practically run him over that one day, months ago. But he could never forget those unmistakable aqua eyes he had longed to see again for so long. ‘Demyx… You’ve been right under my nose…’

Demyx, being the talented performer, didn’t falter the slightest bit when Zexion practically landed at his feet, merely glancing down at him with a soft smile, his gaze completely directed at his slate-haired best friend for the remainder of the song. “Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be right here waiting for you… Whatever it takes, or how my heart breaks, I will be right here waiting for you…”

The crowd no longer existed, just Demyx, Zexion, and the slowly evaporating melody from the sitar as the song reached its end. “…Waiting for you…”

The blond’s hands finally stilled on his sitar, the final chord lingering in the air for what felt like an eternity as he and Zexion gazed at each other.

“Hey Zexy,” Demyx whispered before turning his attention back to the crowd, standing and taking a slight bow. He swiftly made his way off the stage while the crowd erupted into delighted applause, his friends cheering him on the most. They watched in mild confusion as he slipped out the door, heading outside.

Axel, Roxas, and Namine were about to follow him, but stopped upon seeing a blur they recognized as Zexion rush after the blond musician.

Shortly after, Marluxia pulled Axel aside, asking him for a favor.

… … …

The night sky was clear but the air outside was chilly. Zexion shuddered as he stepped out into the cold, his still moist shirt only worsening his condition. He couldn’t care less however, as he spotted the blond standing in the middle of Radiant Garden University’s grand lawn in front of the coffee house, his back turned. Zexion strode over and opened his mouth to speak, but was unable to find the words to even begin.

Demyx was positive Zexion had followed him, so when he heard someone come up behind him and stop, he didn’t turn to see who it was. “I wasn’t sure you’d really be there when I went up to play that song, but Namine told me you were there pretty often, so I guess I got lucky.”

“How long have you known we were going to the same school? If Namine knows you, why didn’t she ever mention you?” Zexion asked, his eyes slowly widening as his mind registered what Demyx had said. ‘He dedicated that song to me?’

“I’ve known for a few months now. And I begged Namine not to tell you. I wanted… to confront you myself. …I had so many questions when you left, but no way to ask them. No phone number, no address… I thought I’d never see you again.”

“I believed that as well,” Zexion replied, looking down at the ground.
Demyx remained standing with his back to Zexion, glancing upward to look at the stars. “Why did you leave?”

“My father, he-”

“Hates me, yeah, I know. I mean, why didn’t you tell me you were leaving? Why wait until the day you left? Did you not want me to know?”

Zexion sighed, looking back up at the back of Demyx’s head. “My father threatened to pull me out of school earlier if I told you.”

“…You never told me why he started hating me. One day he’s all really nice and treating me like a second son and the next, he starts glaring at me like I burned his house down or something. He wouldn’t let me talk to you when I called your house; he pulled you away whenever he saw us hanging out. I only got to see you during school hours our last two years. What did I do, Zexion? What did I do?” he asked frantically, finally turning to look at his best friend with an almost pained expression.

Zexion looked away again, unable to stand the look Demyx was giving him. “It’s nothing you did, Demyx. My father… is just a complicated man and-”

“Zexion, stop dodging the question. If you didn’t want to see me anymore, then just say it.”

Zexion’s head shot up at this. “Never want to see you again? That’s the last thing I want, Demyx,” he replied with a frown.

“Then why did your dad take you away from me?!?” Demyx shouted, his hands balling into fists.

His best friend stared back at him with a look of mild shock, never having seen the blond this angry in his entire life. It was at that point he realized that perhaps Demyx felt the same way he did. “Demyx, I…”

“Didn’t you... Did you miss me as much as I missed you?” Demyx asked, barely above a whisper, taking a step closer to Zexion. His anger quickly faded, replaced by that same longing he’d had during his performance, his fists uncurling. “…Are we still friends?”

Zexion didn’t notice the slowly closing gap between them until their faces were merely inches apart, both slowly leaning towards each other. “Demyx, I don’t believe we can ever return to the way things were.”

Demyx blinked, snapping back to reality and reluctantly but quickly pulling away from Zexion. “W-why?” he asked, trying desperately to dispel the knotting in his stomach.

“…Because, Demyx,” Zexion began, refusing to break away from the spell that had come over them, knowing this could be his only chance to show Demyx he felt the same way. He reached up and pulled Demyx’s head down to his height, crashing their lips together in a fervent kiss.

Demyx let out a muffled cry of surprise before quickly melting into the kiss, curling an arm around Zexion’s waist to pull him closer.

The two didn’t notice the sudden flash of a camera from a nearby tree, too absorbed in each other. Xigbar had been hanging upside down from the tree, eavesdropping of course, mentally patting himself on the back for bringing the camera. “Man, wait till the others see this. Heh, I knew you had a secret lover, Mr. I-don’t-need-a-girlfriend.”

Demyx and Zexion broke apart for air, neither saying a word until Zexion broke the silence. “Because I love you, Demyx… Even with that ridiculous hairstyle...”

His best friend laughed, sticking his tongue out at him playfully. “I love you too, Zex-”

“WAAAHHH! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!!!” Vexen ran screaming past the pair, the back of his coat on fire.

“WAIT, VEXEN! YOU SAID YOU’D FALL IN LOVE WITH ME WHEN YOU SPONTANEOUSLY COMBUSTED, WHY ARE YOU RUNNING?” a blur of pink ran past them as well, chasing behind the tall blond.

“Did one of Vexen’s experiments explode again?” Zexion wondered aloud to himself.

“Mnn, nah, that looks like Axel’s work. I bet Marluxia asked him to do it. He’s the pink haired guy you just saw.”

“Demyx, you have some strange friends.”

“At least none of my friends are on fire…”

Demyx and Zexion turned back to look at each other, laughing before they came together for another kiss.