Was It Really Hatred? Pt. 3

Pairing: Roxas X OC 

Summary: These two have been at each other's throats for years. Never have they ever gotten along and they never plan to. But when the Halloween Dance comes around and they mysteriously meet, it reveals a surprising secret between the two. It leaves one of them wondering, "How did this war between us even start?"

“Alright, alright. Settle down people.” Leon called into a mic as Kaylie turned down the music. “I have an announcement to make.” As everyone listened he said, “Today isn’t just a random party we felt like throwing. It might have been at first... but now, I have a special surprise for our great DJ.” Kaylie gave him a look as he said, “Guess who’s DJing the Winter Formal next month?” Her eyes immediately lit up as she jumped on him happily, “No fucking way! Leon you are the best! I can’t believe I’m DJ-ing!!!” Everyone cheered as she beamed, “Alright, this party is just getting started!” She began playing again with Leon as backup. Soon, Yuffie stopped her, “Hey, play with us for a bit. Let Leon take over.”

“Alright. What are we doing?” She said as they headed to Leon's room. Yuffie beamed as she closed the door behind her, "Seven minutes in heaven."

"Hell no." She said, but Yuffie wouldn't let her leave. "Come on. It's never hurt anyone. You'll go first."

"But--"

"No, buts! Just wait in here for your partner!" She pushed her into the closet, closing it quickly as she screamed, "Ah! Yuffie!" She groaned as she sat down in the dark closer, wanting to get the game over with. Soon, the door open and a familiar person walked in. The door closed behind him as he said, "Kay--"

"Ok here's what's gonna go down. You stay on that side of the closet and ill stay on this side. Seven minutes will go by fast If we just not bug each other."

"Heh, I knew you didn't like me... But I didn't think this much." He sighed a bit hurt. She gave him a look, "Have you looked in a mirror? Mr. McFlirtalot. Of course I don't like you."

"Do I really bug you that much? I've really turned down my flirting and pick up lines."

"That isn't what this is about. It's just flirty playboys that get to me." She glared as he scoffed, "And what part of me made you think I wa a playboy?! You realized I'm practically at the bottom of the school hierarchy because of your brothers stupid disciplinary committee."

"Look..." He cut her off. "I know I can be persistent. But I swear. You are the only girl I flirt with. I don't flirt or play around with any other girl."

"... Why?" She questioned. "We aren't friends, we don't know each other. Of all the girls you know, why me?"

"Well, something about you is just.... Attractive." He smiled. "Your smile, your kindness... Maybe not to my friends and I, but to others. You're a really amazing girl. I really want to get to know you better.” She was silent as he gave a soft laugh, “And there is more to me then the persistent flirt too. I hope you’d be interested in getting to know the rest of me."

"Maybe..." She said. "You really are more than what meets the eye. It might be cool getting to know you better."

"So does that mean we have a date next Friday?" He winked as she scoffed, "As friends. Just to get to know each other, alright? It's not a date date." He cheered, "Sweet! I’ll take what I can get!"

"Heh. I'm looking forward to it. Don't disappoint me."

"You got it." He beamed as the door soon opened. Yuffie pouted, "You are seriously no fun, Kay. Not even a smooch? Urgh..."

"That's what happens when you force me against my will to play. She answered as she headed out, giving Hayner a small wave before leaving the room.

~

“Hey....”Roxas approached Leon as he took a break in the kitchen. He let his laptop play a few tracks as he grabbed a drink and turned to face him. “Do I know you?”

“Seriously?” he gave him a look. “I get that you know a lot of people, but this is like-- never mind. How’s Star been?”

“Oh, you’re the dweeb who had her necklace.”

“Yeah.”

“She’s doing great.” he answered. “You never kept in contact with her?”

“She never gave me a number.” Roxas replied. Leon sighed, “Oh, then I suppose you didn’t hear.”

“Hear what?”

“Star. She got a scholarship to Destiny University. She left last week.” he stated.

“What?” he said surprised, a bit hurt. However he gave a forced smile, “That’s great. I wish I could’ve seen her off.” Leon nodded as he asked, “What about her boyfriend? Did he go with her?”

“Of course not. D.U isn’t exactly the most affordable college.” he scoffed. “He’s sticking around. They’re attempting long distance right now.”

“Oh.” he said almost too disappointed.

“Leon.” they heard as tension grew. Kaylie stood in front of Roxas, giving him a soft glare, but looked at Leon, “Hey, I gotta get going.”

“Already? What’s the problem?” he wondered as she replied, “The idiot heard about the party he wasn’t invited to and is throwing a fit trying to find where it’s at. I gotta lead him off the trail.”

“I’m sure we can have someone else do that.”

“I wish, but that asshole isn’t easy to deal with. It’s better if I handle it.” she stated. “Thanks though for this. It was great.” He nodded, “You deserved it...” He trailed off as Hayner soon approached wrapping an arm around her shoulder, “What? You’re leaving?!”

“Seriously? You are like the king of eavesdropping.” she rolled her eyes as he smirked, “All I heard was ‘I’m like a King.’ I like it.” She scoffed, “Well, your majesty let’s remove that royal arm of yours off me.” She moved away as he said, “What? But the king’s gotta protect his precious gem.”

“Alright, i’m about to vomit from those lines.” She giggled. She waved, “I’ll see ya, Leon.” He waved as Hayner said, “Hey, hold on. I’ll walk you!” He turned to Roxas, nudging in an urgent whisper, “It’s finally happening bro! I’m getting my chance! Wish me luck!” He rushed off before Roxas could even respond, chasing after Kaylie.

“... When did they get so close?” Leon questioned as Roxas, suddenly a bit moody, replied, “No idea.... I gotta go.”

~

“Hey, there was something I wanted to ask you....” Hayner said as he and Kaylie walked through town.

“What’s up?”

“How did you meet Star?” he asked causing her to stop. She looked at him, “Well that came out of nowhere. Why the sudden curiosity?”

“Well, it’s been bugging me for a while.” he stated. “I mean, you and her are all buddy buddy, but Seifer didn’t know her at all at the dance. Why is that?”

“I knew her roommate.” she thought. “Tifa. She graduated from here last year. I met her when I first visited Tifa’s campus and she introduced me.” Hayner asked, “Oh, so you two have known each other for almost a year? You must be pretty close.”

“Is this going somewhere?” she gave him a look.

“Well-”

“Kayl! What the hell is that dweeb doing here?!” they both flinched as Seifer appeared with the disciplinary committee. She gave Hayner a quick apologetic face and whispered, “Sorry about this... I’ll make it up to you.”

“Wha--” he was suddenly shoved away roughly as she glared, “This losers thought he actually had a chance with me, bro. Can you believe that?!”

“Heh, as if a freak like you could score my sister.” he laughed.

“But-” Hayner began as Seifer threw detention slips at him. “That’s for you and your loser friends.”

“What?! For what, jerk?!” He growled as Seifer laughed, “For going for my sister. She won’t give you the time of day. Don’t be stupid and stay in your place, dweeb.” They headed off as Kaylie said, “I’ll void those. Don’t worry.”

“Kay-”

“Kayl! Let’s go before you catch his loser germs.” her brother shouted as she said, “I’m coming!” She said, “I’ll make it up to you on Friday. But please keep it on the down low. I don’t want Siefer hearing we’ve been hanging out...”

“A secret relationship?” he teased. “Already, we’re like a typical love drama.”

“Not. A. Relationship.” she gave him a look. “I’ll see you later.” She left without another word as he got up, sighing, “Well see about that...”

~

“What?!” Kaylie gave Yuffie a shocked look as they chatted over a school assignment the next morning. “Fi, this joke isn’t funny--”

“I’m serious, Kay!” she replied. “There’s stuff missing in the bag.”

“What’s missing?”

“The headband horns to your costume and the contacts.” she stated. Kaylie thought, “Okay. No need to panic. Those items can’t prove anything.” Yuffie sighed, “Alright... if you say so... but you realize if someone took those things, they saw the entire outfit Star was wearing the night of the dance. They know she was completely in disguise.”

“But it can’t be traced back to me... can it?” she whispered as she replied, “I hid the bag in the same closet everyone else was putting their bags in. Whoever found it can’t narrow it down to you.” She sighed in relief as she said, “Ok. So it’s completely fine...”

“... You don’t sound convinced...” Yuffie said as she replied, “Convinced? What are you talking about... I’m totally fine... Totally, perfectly--”

“Kay!” she called as she whacked her hand away from her neck. The class turned to them as Yuffie laughed, “Sorry.... there was a bug on her...” They all resumed what they were doing as she gritted, “Seriously? You can’t take that necklace out!”

“.. Sorry...” she pouted. “Urgh. This is not happening! Of all times, I don’t want to worry about someone finding out about Star. I have exactly twenty seven days to the Winter Formal and I don’t want to think about what will happen if I get found out.”

“Ok, ok.” Yuffie thought. “You just focus on that. If someone does figure out Star doesn’t really exist. I’ll take the fall.”

“That doesn’t make sense. People saw you with Star at the dance.” she gave her a look. She pouted, “Damn. I’ll think of something. Just leave it to me.” She sighed, “Thanks, Fi. You’re the best...”

“I thought I was.” they heard as Yuffie glared, “Excuse me, loser? Not even a bit-”

“He’s cool, Fi.” Kaylie smiled. “But definitely not better than you.”

“Ouch. Way to put a dent on my ego.” Hayner flirted as she scoffed, “I didn’t think it would be that easy to hurt it.”

“Normally not, but if it’s coming from you, then it can hurt alot.” he smiled. “Maybe you should kiss me better.”

“Not even in your dreams.” she laughed as Yuffie called, “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on.” She rubbed her forehead, “What kind of alternate universe have I suddenly been pulled into? Why the hell is this dweeb flirting with my best friend? And even more important, why is my best friend actually flirting back?”

“Haha, I just got to know him a little better.” Kaylie replied. “He’s really not that bad of a guy.”

“... what happened in the closet that I didn’t hear about?” she gave Kaylie a look.

“A lot of juicy stuff.” Hayner winked as Kaylie gave him a whack on the head, “Oh, shut up. This loser just got to me. I was judging him on his normally flirtatious self and that’s only a part of him. I decided to let him show me who he fully is.”

“...so... he’s cool now?” Yuffie asked as she nodded in confirmation. “But his friends aren’t.”

“Nope.”

“Aww, come on. They aren’t so bad...”

“Look Hayner...” Kaylie said. “I’m already taking a chance being friends with you. But you is where I draw the line. But your friends just... well they don’t seem like such great people--”

“Kayl. You don’t even know them.” Hayner defended them. “Come on. Just try and get to know them.”

“... I’m gonna get to know you. I’ll keep my word for that. But I don’t need to get to know your friends.” she said as he sighed with a smile, “Would you look at that... our first fight.”

“Idiot.” she gave him a soft punch as she laughed.

“Heh, you’re right Kay.” Yuffie giggled, “He might be fun to have around.”

~

“... so when did you and Kaylie become friends...” Roxas finally asked as he and his friends had lunch together. Pence and Olette turned to Hayner surprised, “What?! Since when?! And how?!” He gleamed, “Amazing right? It’s all thanks to Leon’s party. I finally got through to her and I’m getting the opportunity I need.”

“No way. Even if there was a chance that you two became friends, that doesn’t mean that she would give you the time of day.” Pence scoffed.

“Oh really?” he smirked. “Then why did she agree to go out with me this friday night?”

“No way.” Olette shook her head. “You’re making that up.”

“Nope. And you’ll see on Friday. I’m gonna make it the best date she’s ever been on!” he grinned excited. Roxas groaned, “Seriously, Hayner? What do you even see in that... that bitch! She’s always bullying us, she’s never cared about us, why the hell would you think she would want to be friends with any of us?”

“Well she does.” he said strongly. “Maybe she’s finally falling for me.”

“She’s obviously up to something! Why else would she even waste her time on someone she’s thinks is a total loser?!” he scolded as Hayner replied, “You know what? I don’t think this is about Kaylie. You think I’m not good enough...”

“What?”

“That’s it isn’t it?” he stated. “You think I’m a loser and that Kaylie’s giving me pity by going out with me.”

“No-”

“Well, I’ll show you. I have a chance with her and I am not gonna let it go by.” he glared. He began heading off, “I can’t believe I actually stood up for you. She was completely dissing all of you and I defended you. But... she might have been right about you Roxas.”

“Hayner-” he was already gone as he sighed. Pence and Olette shared a glance as she asked, “Roxas... what was that?”

“... I dunno.” he sighed. He looked to see Hayner laughing happily with Kaylie and Yuffie as he gave a confident stare, “But I will find out.”

~

“So are you seriously going out with him tomorrow?” Yuffie asked as the two grabbed a snack at the vending machines during passing period. All week, Hayner seemed to hang out with them more than Roxas and his other friends. Kaylie opened her bag of chips as she put one into her mouth, “Yeah, I told him I would. Why? What’s the problem?”

“I dunno... he just never seemed like your type of guy.” she answered as Kaylie asked, “And what’s my type of guy?”

“Well you seem into the quiet guys, mysterious and secretly smart. Kinda like Leon just less annoying.” she said as a whack came to her head. Leon gave her a glare as she said, “I always forget how quietly you can sneak up on people...” Kaylie gave a soft laugh, “Haha, he sure can.”

“What the hell are you girls talking about anyways?” he wondered as Yuffie said, “Thinking about Kay’s ideal guy type. What do you think?”

“You’re asking me?” he gave her a look. Kaylie beamed, “Come on. What kind of guy do you think I like?”

“Does this have to do with that guy who’s always hanging around you now?” he asked as she scoffed, “No. Just answer the question.” He thought and said, “I dunno. Maybe a guy who’s strong and can take a lead.”

“‘Heh, maybe.” she thought about it. Yuffie asked, “Well what is it then?”

“Honestly... I think I’ve always been interested in the best friend type of guy. Someone I can talk about anything with, someone I can be myself with...” she trailed off, saying softly. “Someone... who will always be there for me.... no matter what....” A weird silence came between them as hands soon covered her eyes and a deep voice said, “You mean like me?”

“Haha! That voice was horrible!” Yuffie laughed loudly as Kaylie pushed him away laughing, “Just because you make your voice sound stupid doesn’t mean I don’t know it’s you Hayner.” He scoffed, “Come on. That voice was awesome!”

“It was more creepy...” Leon said. “You should never do that again. Ever.”

“Heh, coming from Leon, that’s saying something.” Yuffie stated, soon pushing him away. “We’ll catch you later Kay.” They left the two as Hayner winked, “Were they trying to give us some ‘make-out’ time?” She gave him a look. “That’s not a no.”

“No.” she laughed as he smiled, “So I’m excited for tomorrow.”

“I would be too if I knew what was going on.” she said as he smirked, “That would ruin the surprise.”

“Come on. A little hint.” she pleaded as he thought, “How about a trade? I’ll give you a hint if I get a little kiss.”

“Fine.” she sighed as he lit up. “I’ll wait.”

“AH!” he groaned. “Not cool, Kayl! You got my hopes up just to tear it down!” She giggled as they soon heard, “Kayl!” She quickly pushed Hayner away, right into the girls restroom next to where they were talking as she turned, “What?”

“What the hell are you doing over here?! We got some kids to bust!” he told her as she replied, “I’m helping Cid with some yearbook stuff. I just came to grab a snack. I’ll take a raincheck.”

“You’ve been ditching the committee all week! What the hell is going on?!”

“Nothing alright. We’re halfway through the year and I got a lot of shit to deal with this month.” she told him. “Look, I’ll be at the meeting after school alright?”

“Whatever....” he gritted storming off as she sighed.

“So how much longer is this gonna go on?” Hayner questioned as he walked out of the restroom. “You realize that’s the tenth time this week you’ve pushed me into the restroom.”

“Sorry. You know how my brother gets around you.” she said. “Just hang on for a little while longer?” He nodded, “Alright. I can do that... I just wish I didn’t have to hide from him.” He laughed, “I’d love to see the look on his face when he hears we’re going out tomorrow.”

“Ha! He’d blow up for sure!” she giggled. The late bell soon rang as Hayner groaned, “Damnit, not again...”

“I got ya.” she said. “I can ask Cid to get you an excused slip.”

“Sweet! You’re the best!” he beamed giving her a hug as they headed off.

~

“Urgh... I hate disciplinary meetings...” Kaylie said as she and the committee left the room. Seifer groaned, “It’s mandatory. I wouldn’t have it if it wasn’t needed. Let’s just get home. I’m sick of this place...”

“I’m going over to Yuffie’s. I’ll see ya there.” she said waving him off, but as she headed to over, she heard, “Hey.” She jumped a bit as she scowled, “Geez, freak. What the hell is your problem?”

“I just wanted to talk.” he said as she shouted, “And you couldn’t approach me like a normal person?!” He ignored the comment, “What the hell is going on between you and Hayner?”

“What do you care-”

“That’s my best friend!” he growled. “Ever since he started ‘hanging out’ with you, he’s become a douche and ditched us!”

“Obviously, he discovered you all were losers.” she pointed out as he glared, “I don’t give a crap if he’s heads-over-heels in love with you, I won’t let you walk all over him like he’s nothing-”

“How the hell am I walking over him?! He’s my friend.” she stated. “It may be a new friendship but at least I’m a better friend than you could ever be!”

“What would you know?! We’ve never even been friends!” he shouted as she flinched. “He’s been my best friend for the past three years and I will not let you ruin our friendship!”

“... Asshole.” she gritted, her fist clenched tightly. She turned away, “You’ve wasted enough of my time!” Before he could respond she ran off, and Roxas could have sworn... there were tears in her eyes as she left.

~

“Kay- hey...” she heard as she quickly wiped her face. Hayner who had suddenly appeared in front of her as she ran towards her place. “Wha... what happened? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine... I’m fine.” she sniffled.

“No you’re not.” he said worried, trying to face her, but she turned away. “I have to go-”

“Kayl, come on. Talk to me.” he said. “I’m here for you.”

“Seriously...” she gave him a forced smile. “It’s nothing...”

“... Did Roxas say something to you?” he asked causing her to go quiet. “Olette told me he was waiting for you today.”

“Seifer’s waiting for me.” she told him. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Kaylie!” he called as she ran off without another word.

~

“What the hell is your problem?!” Roxas heard as he, Pence, and Olette ate some sea-salt ice cream on the clock tower. Hayner had arrived, fist clenched, panting a bit in exhaustion. He angrily approached him, “You can be a real douche, you know that?!” He glared, “Look who’s talking. We’re suppose to be your best friends and not once have you hung out with us this week!”

“And so what? At least I wasn’t hurting anyone!” he retorted.

“Not hurting anyone?! Dude! You fucking hurt all of us by ditching us for some girl! Even worse, that girl being Kaylie!” Roxas responded. “If you don’t remember, she and her brother bullied us for the past almost two and a half years of high school!”

“Seifer might have, but there’s so much more to her than that!” he gritted.

“She’s a bitch to all of us!”

“You fucking made her cry!” he said causing Roxas to flinch and Pence and Olette winced in pain. Silence overcame them as Hayner glared, “I saw her. Tears just streaming down her face after you two talked.”

“Are you kidding me?” he said softly. “All I talked about was you and how you’ve been neglecting us-”

“That’s bullshit!” he stopped him. “Since she first messed with us at the beginning of freshman year, we have not once see that girl shed a tear! Why the hell would she now?!”

“I don’t know.” Roxas said strongly.

“Well if it wasn’t what you said, then it had to be something you did.”

“I didn’t do anything alright?!” he defended himself. “Yeah, its weird that she’s crying, but just because we don’t see her cry doesn’t mean this is the first she has.”

“... well it happened right after she talked with you....” he concurred. “The least you could do is apologize. For whatever happened...”

“If I do, will you knock all this drama off?” he asked as Hayner pondered it. He sighed, “You know how stubborn I can be... but no matter how angry I am at you or how much time I spend with Kaylie... you three will always be my friends.” A relieve smile appeared on all their faces, but Hayner said, “But I can’t forgive you, Roxas, not now anyways. You know I’ve had a crush on her for a while and being my best friend you should know how pissed I am to see her cry like that. That’s not something I can just simply look away from.” He left, leaving Roxas in hurt.

~

“Hey so what happened yesterday?” Yuffie asked as they met up to go to school the next morning. “I thought you were gonna come to my place. And you were ignoring my calls.”

“Not ignoring. Seifer was being a dick so I couldn’t go and he took the battery for my phone to be an asshole too.” she sighed. “Idiot accidentally broke it so I have to buy a new one after school today.”

“What a douche.” she gritted. “I don’t see why you put up with him.”

“He’s my brother. I’m forced to.” she pouted as she answered, “Well, at least you won’t have to put up with him forever. He’s going to college after the year’s over.”

“Yeah, but he’s probably gonna be commuting. So I’ll still be living with him for another year until I go to college.” she groaned.

“So you’re for sure dorming.”

“Hell yeah.” she scoffed. “I’ve already had to live with him all my life. I have to get away ASAP.” She giggled, “So we’re definitely gonna be roommates at Twilight U, right?”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” she smiled. As they entered the school, they heard, “Kayl, how are you feeling?” She quickly said, “Yuffie, I’ll catch up to you in a bit...” She nodded as she quickly grabbed Hayner and pulled him over to a quiet corner where no one would be able to see them.

“Alright, look. Whatever you saw yesterday did not happen, got it?” she glared. “I don’t want to hear one word of it!”

“But Kayl-”

“Not. A. Word.” she said seriously as he sighed, “Fine... but at least tell me... are you okay?”

“... I’m fine, alright?” she answered. “Come on... let’s get to class--” She suddenly pulled something out pushing it into his hands as he said, “Wha-”

“Give me that!” she growled angrily, taking the cash from his hands as Siefer and the rest of the disciplinary committed approached. She smirked looking at the cash, “Heh, pleasure doing business with you, loser.” She pushed past him as Seifer took the money from her, “Nice work, Kayl. Guess we’re all going out for lunch today.” They headed off as she sighed, “Sorry about that... again.”

“Don’t worry about it-”

“Don’t worry about it?!” they both heard as someone stood not to far from them. Roxas came over angry, "Hayner, she's treating you like shit right now! Pushing you around like that!"

"Roxas-" Hayner began as she defended, "If you didn't notice, that was my cash my brother took. I saved him from the trouble Seifer would've caused him."

"That's no excuse for treating him so poorly! And you say he's your friend?! That's a fucking joke!" He scolded as she glared, "I don't wanna be lectured about friendship by an ass like you!"

"Why? Because you know I'm right and and scared to admit you’re a horrible perso-"

"You're the asshole friend!" She stopped him as Hayner suddenly punched him away. He glared, "Knock it off, Roxas! You're being a douche!"

"I'm trying to look out for you!" He growled in response. "She's just using you for her own amusement--"

"Don't make me swing at you again." He cut him off. "Just leave her alone." He turned to look at her as he gave a soft smile, seeing how red her eyes were becoming. She looked away as he told her, "Im here for you Kaylie. Whenever you need me, I'll be by your side." She flinched, hearing those words. She bit her lip, turning fully away, "I'll see you later Hayner."

"Kayl!" He called as she ran off. He glared at his friend, "If this continues... I don't think I'll be able to stay friends with your Roxas." He left without another word as Roxas gripped his head in pain, emotions filling him. Not only because of what he had just said to him, but the words he had said to Kaylie.

"I'm here for you, Kayl. I'll always be by your side." He heard a familiar voice echo in his mind. He grimaced in pain as Stars necklace flashed in his mind as well as a large smile forming on her face as her eyes were shut as she laughed.

"Wha..." He groaned in confusion. He shook it off, heading to class, hoping to get over his headache.

~

"...." It was going to be the most hardest hour of his life. Roxas sat quietly as he was grouped up for a class assignment. Not only was he with Hayner, his original partner for the class, but Yuffie as well. Kaylie was suppose to be their last teammate, however she wasn't in class. And Yuffie must have heard about their little argument as she was sending death glares at him.

“You’re a real asshole you know?” Yuffie gritted under her breath as they worked on the assignment. “And you wonder why Kaylie acts all bitchy to you? It’s because you’re a douche and you deserve it!”

“Hey, for the record, she targeted me and my friends first.” he defended himself. “And I was only trying to look out for my friend.” He took a glance at Hayner, who wouldn’t even face him. He worked on the assignment as Yuffie stated, sarcastically, “By being a total dick to a girl he’s been flirting non-stop with for who knows how long now?! Oh yeah, that’s definitely looking out for Hayner.” Before he could argue, she told him, “He already told you that things are fine with him. You don’t have to be a troublesome ass who gets his nose into everyone’s business!” She got up, “Kaylie wouldn’t ditch class just because of something you said. She doesn’t care about what a loser thinks.”

“Then why did she react that way... it looked like she was gonna cry-” he stopped himself as Yuffie said, “Cry? Kaylie? Those two words are never in the same sentence unless the word between is never.”

“...” They were both quiet as she growled, “Well, obviously you trigger something in her and now she’s totally emotional. Thanks for that, douche.” She talked to the teacher as she walked past them, Hayner called, “Where are you going?”

“To find my best friend.” she whispered confidently. “I’ll keep you updated. You can handle the rest of this...”

“Hey-” Roxas began to call but she left. He groaned as he looked at Hayner, “Come on-”

“Let’s just finish this assignment.” Hayner stopped him, continuing to work.

~

“She was?” Roxas said, almost regretful. Olette nodded as the two had lunch with Pence. “Yeah, I heard her in the bathroom, crying her eyes out. Of course she denied it and told me off, but she ran out afterwards and I haven’t seen her since.... What happened?” Roxas explained what happened in their last two encounters as Olette pouted, whacking him, “You don’t insult a girl like that! Urgh! Come on, Roxas! I thought you of all people would be more polite to women!”

“But it’s the truth-”

“I don’t care if it is.” she responded. “You should’ve held your tongue! Women take things to heart!”

“But she’s never taken anything we’ve said seriously.” he explained. “Why now all of a sudden?!”

“Because you were judging her friendship with Hayner!” she answered. “I dunno if it applies to all girls, but its obvious on Kaylie. Friendship is really important to her. And obviously something special.”

“What do you mean?” he said confused.

“She only gives her friendship to certain people.” she explained. “Yes, she nice to practically everyone, but how many people does she actually hang out with all the time?”

“Leon and Yuffie.” Pence stated as she nodded, “Yeah. Just those two. But you can tell that its not easy to win her friendship. Lots of people have tried. Because they know that she treasures her friends so much.”

“... so it hurt her when I said she was treating Hayner like shit.”

“Exactly.” she said. “She barely became friends with him and if you keep saying that, she might think that she can’t be friends with him because she can’t treasure him like she should. And that will ruin his chances with her and he’ll never ever forgive you for that.”

“...” he sighed, unsure of what to do.

“Apologize.” she told him. “She might kick your ass, but you do kind of deserve it.”

“Gee, thanks.” he said sarcastically.

“Why did you get so crossed with her?” Pence wondered. “I mean, you’ve known Hayner’s been in love with her since freshmen year, but now you suddenly get so angry you’re making girls cry? What’s up with that?”

“I dunno...” he groaned. “I just... JUst hearing that they’re all friendly and flirty and everything just gets me emotionally angry. I mean, she did bully us these last couple years, I dunno how he could like someone like that...”

“... I just... I can’t stand the idea of my best friend... being with someone...” he said, trailing off as he grasped his head again. The familiar necklace flash in his mind, as well as two kids eating sea salt ice cream on the clock tower. Her smiling face appeared again, but younger. Her eyes were once again closed, her mouth opened in a wide, but cute as usual.

“Roxas?” they asked worried as he shook it off. “Sorry... I... I need to check something out-”

“Well it can wait! You still need to apologize.” Olette stopped him as he replied, “She ditched school. I’ll apologize tomorrow. But I really need to find something out.”

“What?” Pence gave him a look as he ran off, “I’ll explain later!”

~

“...” Yuffie walked up to Leon’s place during lunch as she pulled out his spare key hiding under the mailbox and unlocked the door. As she walked in, she heard a music, however, it was a bit depressing. She went up to Leon’s room, soon seeing Kaylie sitting at his desk where the turntables and laptop were. She played the music, mixing the sad songs together as her headphones were blasting loudly.

“...Kayl?” Yuffie called, pulling the headphones off as she turned. Surprise filled her face as she saw her puffy eyes, but she tried not to mention it. “Can we talk?”

“How’d you know where I was...” she turned down the music as she said, “Because you’re my best friend. I know you play when you’re emotional and don’t want to be at home so you come to Leon’s to have time to yourself. But I know deep down you need someone to talk to you...” She was quiet as she took a seat on Leon’s bed nearby. “And I know you play your feelings out. That’s how you express your emotions when you can’t bottle it up anymore...”

“...are you gonna tell me what’s going on?” she wondered as Kayl got up, soon doing something that caught Yuffie offguard. She pulled her very special necklace off of her, holding it out for her, “Get rid of this.”

“What?” she gave her a look. “Kay, that’s-”

“I know what it is.” she said strongly. “But if I want things back to normal I need to move on from the past. Meaning I need to get rid of this.... It’ll get rid of all my problems.”

“Kaylie-”

“Please, Fi. As my best friend, you’ll do this for me... right?” she pleaded as she sighed. “Fine. But at least tell me what happened with Roxas. Why did you react that way?”

“... It just brought back bad memories... with him...” she looked at the necklace. She said, “That childhood friend you don’t talk to anymore? What happened?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” she said.

“But-”

“Things will be normal again after.” she said. “No more worrying about Star, about this Roxas drama, it’ll fix everything.” Yuffie questioned, “But what does your necklace have to do with it all?”

“Please, Fi. Just get rid of it. I need it away from me.” she said, her voice cracking again. She knew this was killing her best friend. “Okay. Okay. I’ll get rid of it right now.” She tossed it in his trash bin as she motioned her out, “Come on, I know what will cheer you up.”

“I’m not really in the mood-”

“Hey, I’m not digging into your past memories, so at least do this with me.” she told her. “Besides, you got a date tonight, so we definitely need a shopping spree to get you ready!”

~

“What?” Leon questioned as Roxas nodded, “I need to get in touch with Star.”

“What for?”

“I just really need to talk to her.” he pleaded. “That’s why I really need her contact information.” He shook his head, “Sorry to disappoint you kid, but even I haven’t had any contact with her since she left.”

“What?”

“Yeah, unfortunately, she going into a hardcore study mode. Left her cell phone back.” he stated as Roxas lit up, “She has to have a laptop. Meaning an email!”

“Yeah, if she does. Kaylie or Yuffie knows it. I don’t.”

“What? Why the hell not?” he wondered.

“Look, I’m not particularly good at keeping in touch with people. If it wasn’t for Kaylie I never even would’ve met her.” he explained. “So that’s why I don’t talk to her. If anyone around here does, it’s Kaylie.” He walked away as Roxas sighed in defeat, knowing that Kaylie would never give him that information. But he had to try... and he knew who might be able to help... if he could get through to him.

~

“Well? What did I tell you?” Yuffie grinned as Kaylie looked at herself in Yuffie’s closet mirror with a bright smile. “Do you look awesome or do you Awesome?!”

“I look amazing~!” she smiled excited. “You are a miracle worker!”

“Not one of my options, but I’ll take it.” she teased. Kaylie’s long blonde hair was let down with a small portion pinned back with a glittery barrette. A plain white ruffled top covered her upper body, a light pink mini skirt covered her waist area and she wore cute three inch black wedges. Yuffie had done her makeup beautifully to enhance her natural look as she asked, “Whatever he has planned for you tonight, he had better not mess any of my hard work up.”

“I’ll be careful with it..” she scoffed.

“So you still don’t know what he has planned?”

“Nope. It would’ve been a lot easier to figure out what to wear if I did...” she sighed. She thought, “He’s a lot more mysterious than we think isn’t he?”

“I think so... he’s definitely a lot smarter than I thought...” she stated.

“Huh? Well maybe he is your type...” she winked as Kaylie rolled her eyes, “Seriously? What made you change your mind about him?”

“I dunno... I guess I got to know him a little better.. like you said, there’s more to him that meets the eyes.” she smiled as Kaylie nodded, “Yeah, but I don’t think it’s gonna be much more than friendship.”

“You can never be too sure.” she stated as Kaylie replied, “His friends don’t like me...”

“And since when do you care about that?”

“Hayner will care. And I don’t want to break up his friendship with them.”

“But, hypothetically, they were to like you, would you date him?” she wondered leaving Kaylie silent. “... I honestly don’t know...”

“It’s a yes or no question, Kay. Do you like him or not?”

“Yeah I like him, but I dunno if yet if it’s in a just friends kinda way or something more...” she explained. “I guess... It’s all relying on this date.”

“And if it goes well... you might finally have a boyfriend?” she teased as she rolled her eyes, “I highly doubt it...”

“But you didn’t say no.” she lit up. “So there is a small chance that it can lead to you and Hayner to get together...”

“Just don’t get your hopes up.” she stated as they heard the doorbell. “And speaking of which... he’s early...”

“Damn....” Hayner beamed as she opened the door. His eyes sparkled as he eyed her up and down, “I didn’t think you could get any hotter!”

“Oh, shut up...” she rolled her eyes. She looked at him wearing nice dress pants and a polo as his hair was the same as always, just like his bright smile. She complimented, “Huh... don’t look too bad yourself...”

“Thanks.” he beamed. “Shall we get going?”

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do...” Yuffie called as they headed out. She scoffed, “There isn’t anything you wouldn’t do...”

“Good point.” she giggled. “I expect her home before midnight!”

“Oh, an hour longer than planned.... even better.” Hayner winked as Kaylie gave him a playful push, “You’re a dork. We are not staying out that late!” He laughed in response as they left into town.

~

“This is so cliche.” Kaylie giggled as they hung out at the park, he pushing her on the swing as he jumped on behind her. She squealed a bit in excitement at the height they were going, “It’s gonna break, Hayner!”

“Hey, what are you implying?!” he beamed, looking down at her. She laughed, soon jumping off as she told him, “Well, I doubt that our date is gonna be hanging out here all day long...”

“Just until seven.” he said getting off and looking at his watch. “I made a reservation at the steakhouse.”

“The steakhouse?! No way. That place is like super exclusive!” she said unconvinced. He grinned, “Well, I’m just that awesome.”

“... you sure are.” she winked as he lit up. Her smile faded as she quickly pulled him to hid under the playground. “Shit... I forget Seifer comes by the park on Fridays.” The two watched as he, Rai, Fuu, and Vivi, picked on a few local kids. “If he sees us together, then he’ll totally screw up my plans of DJing at the formal.”

“I don’t see how you can stand an ass like him as your brother...” he said softly as she responded, “I can’t... Come on. We need to get outta here.” They quietly and swiftly snuck to the back of the park and ran around through the grass and trees, to the front entrance.

~

“... There’s something...” Hayner said as the two walked through town towards the restaurant. “I’ve been wanting to ask you...”

“What?” she said, trying not to sound nervous. He thought about it and finally said, “... It’s about Star....”

“Oh?” she said surprised. “What about her?” He put his hands up in defense, “It’s not that I’m interested in her or anything, but how’s she been?”

“Yeah... she’s doing well. She’s always in the books, that overachiever...” she said. “Why do you ask?”

“So you do keep in touch with her? Like by email or something?”

“Yeah... how else would I get ahold of her?” she wondered confused. He asked, “Once again... I’m not interested, but do you think... I can have her email?”

“Okay, when you put it that way it’s too obvious you are interested.” she gave him a look. “What the hell is going on Hayner?”

“I swear I’m not... It’s... well Roxas.” he said giving in. “Look, when he found out she had a boyfriend... it hit him hard. I figured he’d get over it and it just got worse. That’s why he’s been such a dick lately and he thinks if he can get some kind of closure, it’ll all go back to normal.”

“So he wants to talk to her again?” she questioned surprised as he nodded. “That’s impossible. She barely even remembers him. Why the hell would she want to talk to him?”

“Please, Kayl? You’ll be doing not only me, but yourself a favor. He’ll finally get off your back about us being friends.” he stated as she sighed, “... I’ll talk to him about it myself...”

“Thanks, Kayl.” he smiled, giving her a soft hug. As they got to the restaurant and were seated, Kaylie said, “I’ll be back in a bit. Gonna run to the ladie’s room.” He nodded as she left as he thought about his talk with Roxas.

~*~*~*~

“What?!” Hayner glared. “Why the hell would I do that for you?! You’ve been a total douche to her!”

“Please Hayner. I’m begging you. I need to figure this out and Star might be the only person who can help.” he pleaded. Hayner gave him a look, “Figure what out?”

“I dont know yet... but I think I’ve met Star before. That’s why I’ve been so moody and angry lately. I need to figure this out.” he stated. “Kaylie would never help me if I asked... but maybe if you did...” Hayner gritted, “And why the hell would I do this for you?”

“Because you still are my friend... “ Roxas told him.

“On one condition. Accept me being friends with Kaylie... we might be something more after this date...” he said. “And I want her to be accepted by you guys and feel welcomed into the group.” He pondered the thought, a bit hesitant but nodded, “Alright. I will...”

“Good.” he smiled. “I’ll ask her during the date.”

“Hayner...” Roxas called as he began heading off. “Good luck tonight...”

“Thanks, Rox.” he grinned. As Roxas left in the opposite direction, his smile vanished as he thought to himself, “I dunno, Rox... you couldn’t have possibly known Star before... after all she doesn’t really exist.”

~*~*~*~

“...” he sighed as Kaylie soon returned and they had their dinner.

~

“I’m ba-” Kaylie walked into Yuffie’s house after only to get pounced as Yuffie beamed excited, “Spill everything! What happened?! Are you together?! Talk!”

“Give me a sec!” she laughed. As the two got ready for bed she talked all about their date and how well they got to know each other.

“Awww~! What a cheesy guy!” She laughed as the two hung out in her room, talking. She nodded, “Yeah... and to top it all off... we ate some sea salt ice cream while watching the sunset....”

“That sounds adorable.” she said.

“Yeah...”

“Then why do you look so sad.” Yuffie questioned. She shook her head, “What do you mean?”

“If you had your necklace you’d be fidgeting with it right now.” she explained. “Kay, what was the problem?”

“... it was amazing... until we had the ice cream on the clock tower... while watching the sunset.” she gave in.

“Do you have a problem with ice cream, clock towers, or sunsets?”

“No of course not!” she said as Yuffie replied, “Then I’m not seeing a problem.”

“The problem is all of that put together. It... It brings back some unwanted memories.” she said as Yuffie told her, “The best way to deal with unwanted memories is to face them. They happened, but you’ve moved past them.”

“I dunno...”

“Tell me about it. I’m your best friend for a reason aren’t I?” she smiled as Kaylie replied, “... Yeah, but this is something that I never want anyone to know.”

“What? You’re a serial killer?” she teased as she scoffed, “Fi, seriously. Maybe someday I’ll explain, but... I will take your advice.” She gave a confident look as she said, “I intend to face this problem, and get over it once and for all.”

~