Adopted

Chapter 8

                Ventus walked all the way home alone that day. Sora and Roxas wanted some time to talk and talk they did. Ven didn’t want to wait around just in case Terra came out of nowhere and spotted him and Rox together.

                He kicked a pebble softy away, humming a quiet song to himself as the occasional car passed him by. His bag was heavy from the textbooks he was forced to carry with him and his home was still a good mile away so it was a struggle.

                His foot suddenly snagged onto something and he fell face first into the pavement, his nose making a crunch and he cried out in response. He sat up and touched it only for him to recoil back as waves of pain surged through his face. He began walking again…Aqua would surely ask about this.

                He scrunched his nose every once in a while, before he felt his foot snag onto something else, not again. But this time he was caught by a pair of arms around his waist.

                “Woah. Ven are you alright?” his savior asked him.

                “Yeah I am…Vanitas?”

                The teen nodded and brought the boy back up, “What happened to your nose?”

“Oh nothing I fell.”

                “Ven…”

                “I did! I tripped over something and I fell.” Ven explained. It was then that he noticed Vanitas’s hands were still on his hips, “Umm… Vanitas you can let go of me now.”

                The Fair boy’s eyes widened before pulling his hands away with a little blush, “Oh sorry Ven! I’m just…out of it today that’s all.” Vanitas sat down on the sidewalk and sighed, looking into the grey skies, the clouds blanketing the sun.

                Ven watched the other boy, who seemed to be trying to deep breathe? He sat down next to the black haired teen, “What’s wrong?”

                “Nothing Ven.

                Ventus frowned, “Come on you can tell me! I mean you slept over at my house you can tell me anything.”

“I wasn’t there.” The other mumbled.

                “What?”

                “I wasn’t there!” Vanitas suddenly yelled, “Sora got hurt and I wasn’t there to help him! When our dad left; me and Leon promised Sora we’d take care of him! He came out to us first and you know what? Leon started distancing himself from the both of us until we only saw him at school and at dinner… so it was up to me. And I didn’t do anything.”

                Ventus recoiled at the sudden outburst but quickly recovered, “You wouldn’t have been able to do anything, you didn’t know.”

                “But I did! I saw everything Ven! I watched Sora and that yellow haired bastard Seifer and his friends make fun of Sora. I saw it and I didn’t do anything! What kind of a brother am I letting them do that?”

                “Vanitas it’s starting to rain maybe we shou-“

                “What are their names? Hayner, Pence, Olette,” Ventus pulled the ranting teen up and began dragging him into a shaded alleyway, “And Roxas…Oh that Roxas makes my blood boil! I want to just…rrraaaghhh!”

“Roxas? He didn’t do anything.”

“That’s the thing! He didn’t do anything then and didn’t do anything now! The kid’s weak.”

Ventus looked at him confused, “Then? What do you mean?”

“He didn’t tell you?” Vanitas asked him.

Ventus shook his head, some droplets dripping off his head.

“The two used to be THIS close,” he said, demonstrating by crossing his fingers, “It was those two, a guy named Riku and a girl named…Kira?”

Ventus recalled a name, “Kairi?”

“Yeah her! Those two were the best of friends until Riku and his brother Repliku moved out at the start of Middle School. That’s when things started to fall apart for them. Roxas started hanging out with the wrong kind of people.”

“Vanitas, he’s changed!”

“No one changes! Ever!”

Ventus stepped back, he never knew Vanitas was this upset, “Listen, he might have hurt Sora in the past but I believe he’s changed. If he hasn’t then go ahead and pin it on me but as of right now we need all the help we can get to protect Sora.”

Vanitas stared at the blonde boy intensely before suddenly grabbing Ven’s hand, “Fine…but the moment that Roxas even let’s a scratch hit my brother…then I’m going to destroy him and you have to stand back and let me protect my family.”

Ventus looked at the floor, he didn’t want to be caught up in those eyes, “Alright.”

“Good, now let’s do something about that nose.”