A Knife and a Fall [log]
Who: Axel [roxascomplex] and Sakura [adversarykills], with a brief appearance of Roxas [oathtooblivion].
Where: Roxas' house. The kitchen to be precise.
When: Tuesday 24th June, around about 11:00pm.
Summary: Axel and Sakura are still in trouble over the fact they could drunk a few days before. This leads to Sakura inquiring something of Axel he does not take a liking too. Tempers rise and a few resolutions are made.
Notes: Yes, I did write a lot of this solo. I was bored. Thanks again to Candace for chipping in with Roxas at the end, and making sure this made sense. Please to be reading? ♥
It was late. The few scarce house lights were dropping out of the skyline, one by one, slowly covering the city in a blanket of darkness. One house seemed to be following the same rite - except for a ghostly glow in one of the downstairs windows, as one on the upper level went out.
Sakura was sat in the kitchen; her hands pressed harshly against her knees, staring down through the table towards her feet, and in turn, the floor. She'd seemed a lot more distant in the past few days, barely raising her voice except to reply to someone, when a nod or a shake couldn't cover the task. It was her way of punishing herself - even if Roxas had forgiven her, she couldn't quite forgive herself that easily.
What was more unusual than her sitting there, staring at the floor, was the companion she had seemed to gain whilst doing so. Axel, to, seemed a bit off than his usual self. He was a lot quieter, for one, and sat with his arms crossed lazily as he watched the ceiling, as the last few creaks of Roxas moving around faded. Axel wasn't prone to spending extended lengths of time with Sakura - he didn't particularly like her to any extent, but they had been the ones to drink together and cause this problem.
Silence followed, until Sakura broke it. "Onii-san is..." she started slowly, her fragile figure trembling slightly. "He's... mad with us, isn't he?"
In response, Axel unfolded his arms. "Yeah. You could say that."
Her face a little stern, Sakura looked over at Axel. "We shouldn't have drunk that much. I-I did some b-bad things... I d-don't know if I deserve t-to be f-forgiven..."
"He's already forgiven you," Axel cut across her, sighing slightly. There was no trace of jealousy in his voice, but his face seemed to show it. Unlike Sakura, he had not offered an apology or begged forgiveness off Roxas, and had merely tried to worm his way out of the situation. "I'm the one whose not been. I was leader, and you were the tag-along," he said shortly, completely missing the point why he hadn't been forgiven.
The expression of jealousy did not go unnoticed to Sakura. She blinked a few times, before saying, "... Axel-san... are you... really bothered about what happened the other night?"
Axel stared with an expression of next to clueless ness at her. "What?"
"B-because... if you don't see your wrongs, or r-really see where onii-san stands on this... t-then... you're still..." Sakura shook her head. "... you don't r-really... love onii-san," she finished, treading lightly on her words. Whichever way she looked at it, though, it was true... Axel couldn't grasp 'love' fully.
At that, Axel's face darkened, and his eyes became colder. Sakura wouldn't say something like that. She never overstepped her bounds. In slight disbelief, he looked at her questioningly, repeating, "... what?"
Gulping, her head tilting so it wasn't visible, Sakura whispered, "... you don't know h-how to love onii-san."
It happened in an instant. Axel was on his feet, his fists drumming hard onto the wooden table frame, Sakura wincing in slight fright and screwing up her face, not quite daring to see the reaction she'd caused. Axel glared over at her, his teeth bared slightly, breathing deeply as he watched her, sudden rage building up inside of him. How dare she say that? How dare she?
"Of course I do! How would I be able to love Roxas otherwise?" he said, attempting to keep his temper, his fists growing tighter and tighter at his side. What else there that explained what he felt? Nothing. Of course he knew how to love him... "That's all there is! If there..." he started, but never finished, as a small, almost inaudible voice broke him off.
So soft and sorrowful, almost regretting, but as harsh and unforgiving as a beast. So small, but the words had the impact as if they'd been drilled into his head. Three, almost inaudible words. "No you don't."
He wasn't in control of his body anymore. Axel didn't remember telling himself to walk across the room. Axel didn't recall commanding his pace to halt beside Sakura. Axel didn't recollect grabbing hold of the girls' arm and forcing her to he feet beside him, and tilting her head upright so he could see it. Axel hardly noticed as his hand made contact with those tear stained cheeks.
Sakura didn't move. She remained where she had been, half suspended in mid-air, her cheek stinging and begging for her attention, not daring to say anything at all. She could say she was surprised - but part of her knew that had been coming. She'd overstepped the mark. No matter how good her intentions had been.
"Never..." Regaining his head, Axel consciously dropped Sakura's hand, his voice rasping. "... don't you ever say that again." It took him a few seconds to realize what he'd just done - and upon doing so, turned his back on her. He didn't want to look at her.
Placing a hand to her cheek, Sakura too, turned away from looking at Axel. "I-I o-only... said t-that... because..." She paused. Because what? She cared about Roxas? She'd still said it that way... there were other ways to tell Axel to consider Roxas' feelings in the matter... "... I'm s-sor-"
Axel cut across her. "Don't come grovelling for forgiveness..." he breathed, his temper once again boiling. "Because you won't get it from me."
Silence fell over them, only disturbed by the soft pitter-patter of Sakura's tears sliding down her cheeks and hitting the floor. It could have been seconds, it could have been hours - and both were lost in thought.
What did she mean by that? Axel thought, his face solemn. He was calming again, the fragments of emotion finally settling themselves back down again. After what seemed like eternity, his curiosity got the better of him. "What did you mean?"
Flinching at the sound of his voice, Sakura swayed slightly, before regaining her composure. "Axel-san... loves Roxas-san. But Axel-san doesn't... love onii-san."
Now she was talking gibberish. "What are you on now?" Axel said cluelessly, looking briefly over his shoulder at her.
"I-I k-know you love R-Roxas-san, Axel-san... you really do, but..." she clasped her hands over her chest, sighing lightly. "The inside. Do you consider onii-san? What he is on the inside?"
Even though this sounded farfetched, there was some logic in it - some, that Axel tried to grasp, but missed entirely, causing him to remain silent.
The silence only seemed to spur Sakura on, as she whispered further, "... the way he talks. What he says. His likes. His dislikes. All the things that change Roxas-san, on the outside… to onii-san, on the inside. His personality..."
Axel almost half laughed, before remembering the fact he said he wasn't going to forgive her, so stifled it, still faking anger and annoyance. It seemed it really was impossible to stay angry with this particular girl. "Of course I do. Do I really seem that heartless?"
"No, you don't." Sakura shook her head slowly, before continuing. "Then... it'll be alright. E-except for the one little thing... you seem to... forget..."
Whatever she was getting at, Axel really couldn't see what he was forgetting. "What's that?"
"Onii-san's feelings."
Axel opened his mouth to object, to say something in response - 'what about them' - before he realised just what Sakura was getting at. The lack of consideration he seemed to hold for them - which he couldn't deny. To him, he loved Roxas - but then again, he was selfish. He didn't care as long as Roxas was his. In all his grand master schemes, it was always being selfish. Only half the time did he care about Roxas' feelings: but then again, he found it hard to comprehend it, so often took the path he was used to. Which was ignoring them entirely.
In a rather pathetic excuse for defence, he said slowly, "... I'm a nobody."
Sakura's voice became stronger, forcing, forcing Axel to consider her words. "But you love him."
"I thought we'd just established that."
"S-so, you're a nobody who c-can love... but if you really love him..." Sakura hesitated. "You have to t-think about onii-san’s feelings, too... not just yours. As in, whatever he decides... don't force him. I..." she paused again, wondering how best to phrase it so that Axel wouldn't think she was taking sides. "I care a-about onii-san. About his happiness. And yours, t-too..."
With that, she turned full circle, touching his arm gently. "S-so... it shouldn't be a fake happiness."
Axel wanted nothing more than to shrug her off, to push her away. But he didn't... have the heart to do it. No matter how bad a pun that was. She was his link - his link to really understanding the fickle things known as emotions. The link that would bring him and Roxas to talking again, if they ever had an argument. She was... strange.
Opening his mouth, Axel said something he never thought he'd say to Sakura. "... thanks."
Sensing the slight nerve at her touching him, Sakura relieved the pressure on his arm, slowly dropping her own back to her side. Wincing again a little at a sudden flash of pain on her cheek, she tensed, before stuttering, "... I-I'll just put s-something o-on this..." and walking calmly over to the sink, where she proceeded to dab cold water on it.
Axel watched her, his expression unreadable, before pulling up another chair beside the one she'd been sitting on. The moment of pure anger and hate for her had passed, and seemed to have been swept away, forgotten, into the black mists outside the window. A thought struck him. "Sakura?"
"... Nani?" she jumped, just avoiding falling over backwards. "W-what is it?"
"That," he leaned back in his chair, nodding to the slight red mark that had appeared on her face. "Will you tell him?"
It was clear he was referring to Roxas. Sakura smiled weakly, before shaking her head. She didn't hold grudges, and saw no point in telling Roxas, now the matter was resolved. She could see why Axel had asked - his eyes seemed cautious. As if he knew, that if he, or she, told Roxas what had happened - Axel'd be in serious strife for hitting her.
His face relaxed a little as he stared upright, his eyes becoming distant. "That's alright, then. Except..." he paused. He hadn't told anyone about this yet, though he'd received the summons a few days beforehand. He doubted Roxas had revealed the Organization to her - he wanted that part of his past kept as far away as possible. Axel too, was not keen on revealing it, but it seemed she was the best to tell. It wasn't like she'd go blabbing - she'd kept one secret for him in the past.
"I've been called back. For a while - for a check up, to see if I'm not being a traitor. I don't know how long it will take," he finished, gazing over at Sakura, the running tap long forgotten as she watched him. "...tell Roxas. He'll know what I mean."
"I understand." Sakura didn't question, or ask for an explanation. She had long since figured Axel and Roxas were part of something - Axel's cloak was kind of a give a way - but she wasn't going to ask. She'd overstepped her boundaries once already, and doing so again wouldn't be wise. It wasn't in her nature to interfere - she was still surprised at herself for interfering with Axel's feelings to begin with.
She busied herself again, running the water and gently towelling her face. "I'm selfish, too."
Axel looked over at her. Now she really wasn't making any sense. "You, selfish?" he said, unbelieving.
Nodding, Sakura slowly turned off the tap, before turning to face Axel. "What I said before... to you. A-about wanting happiness? I’m s-selfish... I w-want you to be happy, Axel-san... so I was selfish, and interfered. I w-want onii-san to be happy too, so I-I interfered... I was s-selfish..." she ground to a halt, once again lost for words.
It seemed they both had very different ideas of what 'selfish' was.
Tutting slightly under his breath, Axel said simply, "... that's not selfish."
Their conversation was interrupted, because at that moment the kitchen door opened - to reveal an extremely alarmed Roxas. Evidently he'd just woken up; from his still half-asleep appearance to the fact he was in his bed clothes. He did a once-over of the room, almost as if expecting to see something that shouldn't be there. But nothing seemed to be out of place, and so his accusing gaze came to rest on Axel. Whatever all the commotion had been about, Axel was the source of it, he was sure of that much.
"I thought something happened," Roxas said tersely, his eyes narrowing. "What was all the shouting about?"
"We haven't..!" Axel jumped immediately to the defense, almost falling off his chair as he pushed himself upright. "Nothing happened!"
"Haven't what?" Roxas' eyes only narrowed further in suspicion, and he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. Axel had already given himself away, but this time Roxas addressed Sakura. "What happened?"
Sakura flinched as Roxas' gaze fell over her, but she had the sense to hide her guilt with a thought up excuse that might get them both out of this. "... I-I... I fell," she said hesitantly. Hopefuly her cheek would help that lie.
Roxas looked temporarily confused - what did that have to do with anything? - but then he noticed her cheek, which was bright red and sore-looking. But that didn't answer his question, and it only served to make him all the more suspecting of them. "So...? I heard Axel shouting. You're telling me he was shouting because you fell over?"
"A-ah..." Sakura lapsed into silence.
Seeming as though she was lost for explanation, Axel came to her rescue. "... a knife," he muttered, testing the story in his head, before his voice became louder. "Yes, a knife. She left one out. I shouted to stop her from hitting her hand with it, she slipped, and fell over."
Roxas looked far from convinced, but he wasn't going to push it any further. He was far too tired and whatever had happened, they seemed relatively fine and would rather it remained secret. He shook his head, replying, "You're alright now, though? You weren't hurt badly?"
"I-I'm fine," Sakura brushed it off, waving her hands in front of her face. "E-everything's fine..." she repeated, though she didn't sound one hundred percent convinced herself.
"Did we wake you?" Axel said suddenly, cutting across them, his gaze set on Roxas.
Roxas was starting to get a little irritated with their secretiveness, and it was clear in his tone when he turned back to Axel. "Yes. I thought something... bad might've happened, so I came to look."
"She said she's fine," Axel repeated, dragging himself to his feet, and rounding the table slowly to stand in front of Roxas. "Now it's you I'm worried about. You should go back to bed. You'll be tired."
"Funny, considering you're the one that woke me up in the first place," Roxas retorted, but was in no mood to argue. "Fine, I’m going. Don't wake me up again."
Axel looked at Sakura, who nodded encouragingly for Axel to say something else, but Axel frowned. He'd said it so many times before for it to actually mean anything, he would really have to mean it this time...
"Roxas?" he started, before slowing, and continuing, "... I'm sorry. Really."
Roxas looked between Axel and Sakura as they met one another's gaze, but he pretended to have noticed nothing and looked back at Axel as soon as he spoke. "It's not a big deal if you were only looking out for Sakura, I guess."
Axel reasoned, but he pressed the matter slightly. "I mean it. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have woken you up."
Out of all the times Axel had been forced into an apology, he really did sound sincere this time. Surprisingly so, which left Roxas unsure of how exactly he was supposed to react. "...I get it, you're sorry. Are you gonna let me go now?"
Axel half laughed, closing his eyes whilst shaking his head. "Yeah. Night, then."
Roxas' hand strayed to the door handle, but he was still eyeing Axel with an odd expression. "...Night. Be careful and don’t fall over again, Sakura." With that said, he opened the door and left the room, disappearing upstairs again.
Sakura nodded, waving in silence till the sound of Roxas climbing the stairs started to disintergrate, before looking over at Axel and whipsering, ".. a.. k-knife?"
"It worked, didn't it?" Axel shrugged. "Best I could come up with on such short notice." With that, he began to follow Roxas' example and head for the stairs.
"I-I guess..." Sakura stammered, causing Axel to hault. "Y-you... really listened to w-what I said, Axel-san.."
He paused. Now what was she getting at? "What?"
Sakura smiled lightly, at the slight hint of naivety. "Y-you apologized. Y-you took his feelings into account..."
At that, he looked surprised, and then thoughtful. "Yeah. I guess I did."
Where: Roxas' house. The kitchen to be precise.
When: Tuesday 24th June, around about 11:00pm.
Summary: Axel and Sakura are still in trouble over the fact they could drunk a few days before. This leads to Sakura inquiring something of Axel he does not take a liking too. Tempers rise and a few resolutions are made.
Notes: Yes, I did write a lot of this solo. I was bored. Thanks again to Candace for chipping in with Roxas at the end, and making sure this made sense. Please to be reading? ♥
It was late. The few scarce house lights were dropping out of the skyline, one by one, slowly covering the city in a blanket of darkness. One house seemed to be following the same rite - except for a ghostly glow in one of the downstairs windows, as one on the upper level went out.
Sakura was sat in the kitchen; her hands pressed harshly against her knees, staring down through the table towards her feet, and in turn, the floor. She'd seemed a lot more distant in the past few days, barely raising her voice except to reply to someone, when a nod or a shake couldn't cover the task. It was her way of punishing herself - even if Roxas had forgiven her, she couldn't quite forgive herself that easily.
What was more unusual than her sitting there, staring at the floor, was the companion she had seemed to gain whilst doing so. Axel, to, seemed a bit off than his usual self. He was a lot quieter, for one, and sat with his arms crossed lazily as he watched the ceiling, as the last few creaks of Roxas moving around faded. Axel wasn't prone to spending extended lengths of time with Sakura - he didn't particularly like her to any extent, but they had been the ones to drink together and cause this problem.
Silence followed, until Sakura broke it. "Onii-san is..." she started slowly, her fragile figure trembling slightly. "He's... mad with us, isn't he?"
In response, Axel unfolded his arms. "Yeah. You could say that."
Her face a little stern, Sakura looked over at Axel. "We shouldn't have drunk that much. I-I did some b-bad things... I d-don't know if I deserve t-to be f-forgiven..."
"He's already forgiven you," Axel cut across her, sighing slightly. There was no trace of jealousy in his voice, but his face seemed to show it. Unlike Sakura, he had not offered an apology or begged forgiveness off Roxas, and had merely tried to worm his way out of the situation. "I'm the one whose not been. I was leader, and you were the tag-along," he said shortly, completely missing the point why he hadn't been forgiven.
The expression of jealousy did not go unnoticed to Sakura. She blinked a few times, before saying, "... Axel-san... are you... really bothered about what happened the other night?"
Axel stared with an expression of next to clueless ness at her. "What?"
"B-because... if you don't see your wrongs, or r-really see where onii-san stands on this... t-then... you're still..." Sakura shook her head. "... you don't r-really... love onii-san," she finished, treading lightly on her words. Whichever way she looked at it, though, it was true... Axel couldn't grasp 'love' fully.
At that, Axel's face darkened, and his eyes became colder. Sakura wouldn't say something like that. She never overstepped her bounds. In slight disbelief, he looked at her questioningly, repeating, "... what?"
Gulping, her head tilting so it wasn't visible, Sakura whispered, "... you don't know h-how to love onii-san."
It happened in an instant. Axel was on his feet, his fists drumming hard onto the wooden table frame, Sakura wincing in slight fright and screwing up her face, not quite daring to see the reaction she'd caused. Axel glared over at her, his teeth bared slightly, breathing deeply as he watched her, sudden rage building up inside of him. How dare she say that? How dare she?
"Of course I do! How would I be able to love Roxas otherwise?" he said, attempting to keep his temper, his fists growing tighter and tighter at his side. What else there that explained what he felt? Nothing. Of course he knew how to love him... "That's all there is! If there..." he started, but never finished, as a small, almost inaudible voice broke him off.
So soft and sorrowful, almost regretting, but as harsh and unforgiving as a beast. So small, but the words had the impact as if they'd been drilled into his head. Three, almost inaudible words. "No you don't."
He wasn't in control of his body anymore. Axel didn't remember telling himself to walk across the room. Axel didn't recall commanding his pace to halt beside Sakura. Axel didn't recollect grabbing hold of the girls' arm and forcing her to he feet beside him, and tilting her head upright so he could see it. Axel hardly noticed as his hand made contact with those tear stained cheeks.
Sakura didn't move. She remained where she had been, half suspended in mid-air, her cheek stinging and begging for her attention, not daring to say anything at all. She could say she was surprised - but part of her knew that had been coming. She'd overstepped the mark. No matter how good her intentions had been.
"Never..." Regaining his head, Axel consciously dropped Sakura's hand, his voice rasping. "... don't you ever say that again." It took him a few seconds to realize what he'd just done - and upon doing so, turned his back on her. He didn't want to look at her.
Placing a hand to her cheek, Sakura too, turned away from looking at Axel. "I-I o-only... said t-that... because..." She paused. Because what? She cared about Roxas? She'd still said it that way... there were other ways to tell Axel to consider Roxas' feelings in the matter... "... I'm s-sor-"
Axel cut across her. "Don't come grovelling for forgiveness..." he breathed, his temper once again boiling. "Because you won't get it from me."
Silence fell over them, only disturbed by the soft pitter-patter of Sakura's tears sliding down her cheeks and hitting the floor. It could have been seconds, it could have been hours - and both were lost in thought.
What did she mean by that? Axel thought, his face solemn. He was calming again, the fragments of emotion finally settling themselves back down again. After what seemed like eternity, his curiosity got the better of him. "What did you mean?"
Flinching at the sound of his voice, Sakura swayed slightly, before regaining her composure. "Axel-san... loves Roxas-san. But Axel-san doesn't... love onii-san."
Now she was talking gibberish. "What are you on now?" Axel said cluelessly, looking briefly over his shoulder at her.
"I-I k-know you love R-Roxas-san, Axel-san... you really do, but..." she clasped her hands over her chest, sighing lightly. "The inside. Do you consider onii-san? What he is on the inside?"
Even though this sounded farfetched, there was some logic in it - some, that Axel tried to grasp, but missed entirely, causing him to remain silent.
The silence only seemed to spur Sakura on, as she whispered further, "... the way he talks. What he says. His likes. His dislikes. All the things that change Roxas-san, on the outside… to onii-san, on the inside. His personality..."
Axel almost half laughed, before remembering the fact he said he wasn't going to forgive her, so stifled it, still faking anger and annoyance. It seemed it really was impossible to stay angry with this particular girl. "Of course I do. Do I really seem that heartless?"
"No, you don't." Sakura shook her head slowly, before continuing. "Then... it'll be alright. E-except for the one little thing... you seem to... forget..."
Whatever she was getting at, Axel really couldn't see what he was forgetting. "What's that?"
"Onii-san's feelings."
Axel opened his mouth to object, to say something in response - 'what about them' - before he realised just what Sakura was getting at. The lack of consideration he seemed to hold for them - which he couldn't deny. To him, he loved Roxas - but then again, he was selfish. He didn't care as long as Roxas was his. In all his grand master schemes, it was always being selfish. Only half the time did he care about Roxas' feelings: but then again, he found it hard to comprehend it, so often took the path he was used to. Which was ignoring them entirely.
In a rather pathetic excuse for defence, he said slowly, "... I'm a nobody."
Sakura's voice became stronger, forcing, forcing Axel to consider her words. "But you love him."
"I thought we'd just established that."
"S-so, you're a nobody who c-can love... but if you really love him..." Sakura hesitated. "You have to t-think about onii-san’s feelings, too... not just yours. As in, whatever he decides... don't force him. I..." she paused again, wondering how best to phrase it so that Axel wouldn't think she was taking sides. "I care a-about onii-san. About his happiness. And yours, t-too..."
With that, she turned full circle, touching his arm gently. "S-so... it shouldn't be a fake happiness."
Axel wanted nothing more than to shrug her off, to push her away. But he didn't... have the heart to do it. No matter how bad a pun that was. She was his link - his link to really understanding the fickle things known as emotions. The link that would bring him and Roxas to talking again, if they ever had an argument. She was... strange.
Opening his mouth, Axel said something he never thought he'd say to Sakura. "... thanks."
Sensing the slight nerve at her touching him, Sakura relieved the pressure on his arm, slowly dropping her own back to her side. Wincing again a little at a sudden flash of pain on her cheek, she tensed, before stuttering, "... I-I'll just put s-something o-on this..." and walking calmly over to the sink, where she proceeded to dab cold water on it.
Axel watched her, his expression unreadable, before pulling up another chair beside the one she'd been sitting on. The moment of pure anger and hate for her had passed, and seemed to have been swept away, forgotten, into the black mists outside the window. A thought struck him. "Sakura?"
"... Nani?" she jumped, just avoiding falling over backwards. "W-what is it?"
"That," he leaned back in his chair, nodding to the slight red mark that had appeared on her face. "Will you tell him?"
It was clear he was referring to Roxas. Sakura smiled weakly, before shaking her head. She didn't hold grudges, and saw no point in telling Roxas, now the matter was resolved. She could see why Axel had asked - his eyes seemed cautious. As if he knew, that if he, or she, told Roxas what had happened - Axel'd be in serious strife for hitting her.
His face relaxed a little as he stared upright, his eyes becoming distant. "That's alright, then. Except..." he paused. He hadn't told anyone about this yet, though he'd received the summons a few days beforehand. He doubted Roxas had revealed the Organization to her - he wanted that part of his past kept as far away as possible. Axel too, was not keen on revealing it, but it seemed she was the best to tell. It wasn't like she'd go blabbing - she'd kept one secret for him in the past.
"I've been called back. For a while - for a check up, to see if I'm not being a traitor. I don't know how long it will take," he finished, gazing over at Sakura, the running tap long forgotten as she watched him. "...tell Roxas. He'll know what I mean."
"I understand." Sakura didn't question, or ask for an explanation. She had long since figured Axel and Roxas were part of something - Axel's cloak was kind of a give a way - but she wasn't going to ask. She'd overstepped her boundaries once already, and doing so again wouldn't be wise. It wasn't in her nature to interfere - she was still surprised at herself for interfering with Axel's feelings to begin with.
She busied herself again, running the water and gently towelling her face. "I'm selfish, too."
Axel looked over at her. Now she really wasn't making any sense. "You, selfish?" he said, unbelieving.
Nodding, Sakura slowly turned off the tap, before turning to face Axel. "What I said before... to you. A-about wanting happiness? I’m s-selfish... I w-want you to be happy, Axel-san... so I was selfish, and interfered. I w-want onii-san to be happy too, so I-I interfered... I was s-selfish..." she ground to a halt, once again lost for words.
It seemed they both had very different ideas of what 'selfish' was.
Tutting slightly under his breath, Axel said simply, "... that's not selfish."
Their conversation was interrupted, because at that moment the kitchen door opened - to reveal an extremely alarmed Roxas. Evidently he'd just woken up; from his still half-asleep appearance to the fact he was in his bed clothes. He did a once-over of the room, almost as if expecting to see something that shouldn't be there. But nothing seemed to be out of place, and so his accusing gaze came to rest on Axel. Whatever all the commotion had been about, Axel was the source of it, he was sure of that much.
"I thought something happened," Roxas said tersely, his eyes narrowing. "What was all the shouting about?"
"We haven't..!" Axel jumped immediately to the defense, almost falling off his chair as he pushed himself upright. "Nothing happened!"
"Haven't what?" Roxas' eyes only narrowed further in suspicion, and he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. Axel had already given himself away, but this time Roxas addressed Sakura. "What happened?"
Sakura flinched as Roxas' gaze fell over her, but she had the sense to hide her guilt with a thought up excuse that might get them both out of this. "... I-I... I fell," she said hesitantly. Hopefuly her cheek would help that lie.
Roxas looked temporarily confused - what did that have to do with anything? - but then he noticed her cheek, which was bright red and sore-looking. But that didn't answer his question, and it only served to make him all the more suspecting of them. "So...? I heard Axel shouting. You're telling me he was shouting because you fell over?"
"A-ah..." Sakura lapsed into silence.
Seeming as though she was lost for explanation, Axel came to her rescue. "... a knife," he muttered, testing the story in his head, before his voice became louder. "Yes, a knife. She left one out. I shouted to stop her from hitting her hand with it, she slipped, and fell over."
Roxas looked far from convinced, but he wasn't going to push it any further. He was far too tired and whatever had happened, they seemed relatively fine and would rather it remained secret. He shook his head, replying, "You're alright now, though? You weren't hurt badly?"
"I-I'm fine," Sakura brushed it off, waving her hands in front of her face. "E-everything's fine..." she repeated, though she didn't sound one hundred percent convinced herself.
"Did we wake you?" Axel said suddenly, cutting across them, his gaze set on Roxas.
Roxas was starting to get a little irritated with their secretiveness, and it was clear in his tone when he turned back to Axel. "Yes. I thought something... bad might've happened, so I came to look."
"She said she's fine," Axel repeated, dragging himself to his feet, and rounding the table slowly to stand in front of Roxas. "Now it's you I'm worried about. You should go back to bed. You'll be tired."
"Funny, considering you're the one that woke me up in the first place," Roxas retorted, but was in no mood to argue. "Fine, I’m going. Don't wake me up again."
Axel looked at Sakura, who nodded encouragingly for Axel to say something else, but Axel frowned. He'd said it so many times before for it to actually mean anything, he would really have to mean it this time...
"Roxas?" he started, before slowing, and continuing, "... I'm sorry. Really."
Roxas looked between Axel and Sakura as they met one another's gaze, but he pretended to have noticed nothing and looked back at Axel as soon as he spoke. "It's not a big deal if you were only looking out for Sakura, I guess."
Axel reasoned, but he pressed the matter slightly. "I mean it. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have woken you up."
Out of all the times Axel had been forced into an apology, he really did sound sincere this time. Surprisingly so, which left Roxas unsure of how exactly he was supposed to react. "...I get it, you're sorry. Are you gonna let me go now?"
Axel half laughed, closing his eyes whilst shaking his head. "Yeah. Night, then."
Roxas' hand strayed to the door handle, but he was still eyeing Axel with an odd expression. "...Night. Be careful and don’t fall over again, Sakura." With that said, he opened the door and left the room, disappearing upstairs again.
Sakura nodded, waving in silence till the sound of Roxas climbing the stairs started to disintergrate, before looking over at Axel and whipsering, ".. a.. k-knife?"
"It worked, didn't it?" Axel shrugged. "Best I could come up with on such short notice." With that, he began to follow Roxas' example and head for the stairs.
"I-I guess..." Sakura stammered, causing Axel to hault. "Y-you... really listened to w-what I said, Axel-san.."
He paused. Now what was she getting at? "What?"
Sakura smiled lightly, at the slight hint of naivety. "Y-you apologized. Y-you took his feelings into account..."
At that, he looked surprised, and then thoughtful. "Yeah. I guess I did."