AN: To all those out there without a Valentine. :3
And to those that do have one anyway. ;D

Btw, I thought about Counting Drunks, but I just couldn't do it. D; I fail.

Disclaimed.

Counting Kisses

It was a tradition on Valentine's Day at Roxas's school. It was a simple thing, really. The last period of the school day would usually be the time teenagers would scamper about, placing chocolate kisses on the desks of the person they liked. The more chocolates they received, it meant that they had more admirers…or the one admirer just liked them a whole lot.

Axel didn't like this tradition too much. Being new to the school, he didn't know anyone really well. The only person he was really close with was Roxas. Roxas was a boy, and Axel was almost ninety-nine percent sure that the blond would not waste his chocolate kisses on a boy like him.

"So, are you giving anyone chocolates?" Roxas asked his eccentric redheaded friend, who had his head placed moodily in his arms. Axel glanced up.

"Hmh, yeah," was all he said.

Roxas popped a candy heart with the words 'be mine' into his mouth, "Am I allowed to know who this privileged person is?"

Privileged? Axel thought, faintly amused. He gazed pointedly at the fluffy blond hair on top of Roxas's head. He then scrolled his eyes down to meet those deep blue orbs, almost as if to say 'it's you'. But he kept silent about that little piece of information instead, "No, it's a surprise."

"Really now?" Roxas grinned at him; a light, carefree smile, "Did you hear what Tidus is gonna do?"

"Nope."

"He's gonna send Yuna twenty candy kisses," Roxas's eyes flickered, but Axel didn't notice, "You know the record of the highest number of chocolate kisses given in a year?"

"Fifty…?" Axel tried recalling, "Wasn't that two years ago?"

Roxas nodded solemnly. "I hear someone's giving a hundred this year," he added nonchalantly. Axel raised an eyebrow, but before they could converse further, the teacher prodded them back to their desks. The Valentine madness was about to begin. Normally, the kids would have to go outside their classroom in order to see their 'Valentine'. Some even had to dash outside into the icy winter air to get to the portables. Luckily for Axel, Roxas's seat was only a few steps away.

So when the time came, all Axel had to do was swerve around frantically hyper teenagers, drop a few candy kisses onto the absent blond's desk, and head back to his own. The only thing that shocked him there was that there was a crowd of girls huddled around his small desk, each dropping one chocolate while blushing wildly. They turned to the tall redhead expectantly.

"Um, thanks," he murmured awkwardly. He roved over the teenagers there and was a little disappointed to see that Roxas wasn't there. Thanking the girls once again, he slumped down into his seat, hoping the rest of the day would pass by quickly.

Valentine's Day never worked out properly for him.

"Why so serious?"

A cheerful voice floated towards Axel's ears, and he recognized it as Roxas's. He didn't look up, and Roxas continued, "You got chocolates, I see."

"Yep," but none from you…

Neither of them said anything for a while, then, "Hey, Axel."

"Hm?"

"Look up."

The moment Axel even dared to glance up at his friend, a shower of chocolates rained over his head, some nestling in his bright hair while others toppled over his desk. The little pieces of candy just kept tumbling out of the bag Roxas was holding; soon, there was so many falling out that the kisses just scattered across the floor, much to everyone else's bewilderment. Axel gaped at Roxas, unable to produce any coherent syllables.

"That's ninety-nine," Roxas declared triumphantly. Recalling the earlier statement, instinctively, Axel inquired with a quirked eyebrow.

"Where's the last one?"

"Knew you were counting on it," a small peck on the cheek from Roxas sent warmth crawling up Axel's neck. When the blond started to pull away, Axel grasped onto the front of Roxas's shirt, not wanting to let him go. He couldn't think of anything to say. A simple 'thanks' couldn't be spoken, but Roxas knew what he meant. He smiled.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Axel."

Maybe this particular lover's day wasn't so bad, after all.

Five Minutes to Midnight
Four Minutes to Save the World
Three Words; I Love You
Two is Better Than One
You Are My Only One.

Happy Valentine's Day, fanfiction ~