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The sun has long set over the Islands as Roxas stares at the dark sky littered with stars, the white lights almost twinkling in their brightness against the dark canvas. He pushes the heels of his bare feet into the sand, closing his eyes as the waves by the shore lull him into a peaceful silence. The blond feels a slight breeze caress his body, swaying his hair gently. The feeling of cool air on his skin has never felt so pleasant, so needed. It was such a simple feeling, one that the blond is sure no one would appreciate as much as himself at the moment. Now that Roxas has his own body, own heart and emotions, he’s been experiencing new things all over again. It’s similar to how he felt when he was first born a nobody, but also completely different.Now, experiencing life feels refreshing. He has complete control over himself, with nobody to tell him what to do and how to live. Now, he could spend the entire day in bed, or travel all around if he wanted to. Roxas still isn’t exactly sure what he wants to do with his time now, but that was also part of the beauty of it all. He didn’t have any worries or obligations.“Ah, here you are. I was worried you ran off somewhere.” A voice calls to him close by.Roxas raises his head to see Axel (or was it Lea now? Everyone else called him that, after all), walking towards him with his hands casually in his pockets. The blond doesn’t say anything as the green-eyed man pauses next to him, sitting in the sand and resting his hands against it. His gaze trails upwards like Roxas’ was just moments ago, taking in the night sky around them. The blond finds himself unable to tear his gaze away from his face, remembering that not so long ago the redhead’s cheeks were inked with teardrops. It’s strange not seeing them anymore.“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a world with a sky like Destiny Islands.” The green-eyed man muses quietly.Roxas finally looks up to the sky again, studying all of the different starts intently. He takes it in once more, eyes scanning across the various twinkling lights. “It feels like I’ve seen it so many times, but now I’m actually seeing it for myself for the first time.” He murmurs, resting his chin on his knees.There’s a silence in the air before the redhead responds. “Yea, this place in general must feel familiar to you.” He offers quietly.Roxas simply nods to himself, resigning into another silence. He looks to his side when he hears the redhead yawn loudly and sees him stretch his arms high into the air, releasing the tension with a huff and laying back into the sand. The blond lowers his gaze when the green-eyed man’s meets his, swallowing thickly and looking to the sea again.He’s aware that the redhead is still staring at him even though Roxas is looking away, but that’s something he’s just come to learn as well. There were certain feelings he recognized now that didn’t necessarily make any sense to him before, like the feeling of being stared at.It could be a result of the feeling itself, or the fact that it’s Axel- no Lea staring at him, but either way the blond finds himself tapping a finger against the sand lightly.“Munny for your thoughts?” The redhead calls to him quietly.Roxas bites his lips for a moment then nods, laying down with the redhead as well. He positions himself on his side so he can glance at the taller man.“Do I call you Lea or Axel now?” The blond asks curiously.The green-eyed man blinks at him for a moment, his expression blank. Roxas doesn’t miss the momentary increase in heartbeat inside of his chest, resisting the urge to bring a hand to it. He’s been feeling all sorts of new things inside of him, only experiencing this one when he’s around the redhead. His pride is too large to ask anyone about it though.Then, the redhead’s eyes soften on him and he laughs breathlessly. “That’s what you came out here all by yourself for?” He asks with an amused expression.Roxas feels himself frowning, glaring half-heartedly at the green-eyed man. “No.” He huffs out quietly, looking at the ground and trailing a finger along the sand.The redhead’s laugh comes out in a low chuckle this time, his voice gentle. “You can call me whatever you want, Roxas.” He answers truthfully.The blond becomes aware of his cheeks warming, not even at the redhead’s words but rather the way he speaks them. The way he says his name in a low vibration, his voice sounding so rich to the blond’s ears, it nearly makes Roxas inhale sharply. All of the little things he could never feel before are so amplified now. He wonders if the redhead feels the same way.“Although, if you call me Lea it might make me think of Ven.” The redhead muses, bringing a hand to his mouth in thought.“Calling you Lea feels weird.” Roxas adds in, glancing up at him.Axel rolls onto his side, facing the blond. “Funny you say that. Sora used to say the same thing to me all the time. He could never break the habit.” He says.Roxas glances to the side again. He has a strong feeling that had something to do with the blond resting inside of Sora’s heart at the time. He couldn’t count how many times he cried out to the redhead from within the brunet, begging for his best friend to see him. It was like he was held in a prison that showed him everything going on in Sora’s existence, able to process and feel everything the brunet experienced but unable to be seen or heard from anyone. Anytime Sora was near the redhead, Roxas felt an all-consuming grief and longing overcome him, wishing with all of his being that he could be with Axel one day again.Just thinking about it makes the blond bite his bottom lip, nipping at the skin anxiously. His finger trailing through the sand pauses in its tracks and the blond balls his fist into the ground. He grinds his knuckles into the sand gently, feeling the redhead’s gaze on him once again. Roxas wonders if Axel can tell that he’s feeling out of balance and one glance back up to the redhead’s concerned gaze confirms it in his mind.Axel doesn’t pry though, simply mimicking the blond’s earlier actions and trailing a finger through the sand. He’s been very patient with Roxas getting used to his new body and life, even though the redhead was technically going through the same thing he had. Sure, Axel had resumed his life a lot earlier than Roxas and had a previous life as well, but the blond had a feeling there were some things the redhead was still becoming used to again too.Again, it was one of those instinctual feelings that didn’t really make sense when the blond tried to rationalize it, and yet he still believes it as if it were fact.Finally, Roxas finds the courage to speak his thoughts. “I could feel you when you were close to Sora.” He admits. It’s not the full explanation for his sudden change in mood, but it’s as far as he’ll go tonight. He doesn’t want to recount the details aloud, not just yet. The blond isn’t sure that he’s ready to say them and he’s certain that Axel isn’t ready to hear them.He’s noticed at times that the redhead will stare at Roxas sometimes as if he’s in a trance. When he asked Axel about it the first few times, the redhead blinked in surprise and shook his head, saying he was just lost in thought. But he’s doing it again right now, staring at Roxas as though he’s the only thing around them and he doesn’t think the redhead is lost in thought at all.Axel seems to understand that Roxas doesn’t want to elaborate further, nodding to himself. “One time he told me he craved sea salt ice cream almost every time he was near me.” He says quietly.Roxas can’t help the small laugh that escapes him, recalling the memory. At the time it wasn’t so funny, but looking back now he can’t help feeling a little amused. “Man, I could go for one right about now.” He murmurs.The redhead laughs as well. “We ate some earlier today.” He reminds the blond.“I know,” Roxas states with a yearning tone in his voice as he closes his eyes. “I just missed them so much.” He admits quietly, unable to help the sadness in his voice.A lull falls between them and Roxas wonders if maybe he said too much. He doesn’t want to make the redhead uncomfortable with his miserable thoughts and hopes it doesn’t scare him off.“Anytime I ate one, it just wasn’t the same without you.” Axel says to him.The response comes as a surprise to the blond, opening his eyes to stare at the emerald orbs fixated on him. Axel’s gaze is open and vulnerable, showing Roxas things he could never see through the lens of Sora. It makes him swallow thickly, feeling a foreign sensation in his chest.“Was it the same earlier today?” The blond asks quietly, his voice just above a whisper. It’s never sounded so fragile before.The question must have not been expected by the redhead, Roxas noticing how his eyes widen ever-so-slightly. Then Axel gives him a fond smile, his eyes becoming half-lidded. “It was so much more than before.” He explains. “It felt like a missing piece of me had been returned.”The words send Roxas’ heart into loud beats, the feeling pressing against his chest. His gaze meets the ground sharply as he purses his lips together, feeling embarrassed.“Me too.” Roxas confesses. “I’m thankful you kept your promise.” He says.After a few seconds of silence, the blond glances back up to Axel only to see him looking at Roxas with a warm gaze. There’s also something that looks a bit longing, but the redhead doesn’t seem to want to act on it.Axel cuts through the quietness again, his words sweet like sugar. “You appeared just like a dream.” He recalls, moving to lay on his back once again.Roxas gulps nervously, once again fixated on the redhead. There’s some sand in his hair from when he was laying and the blond reaches out to brush it away. Axel glances at him as he does it, but says nothing as Roxas’ thumb brushes just past his temples. The redhead’s hair is soft to the touch, which surprises Roxas considering how wild the spikes always seem to look. He takes his time skimming his fingers along his hair, wiping away the sand and then resting his hand on the ground gently.“What do you mean?” The blond asks quietly.Axel looks up again at the stars. “In the Graveyard. You came out of no where like a dream.” He elaborates.Roxas is starting to think that his face is going to just stay permanently heated with the way the redhead keeps speaking. “Don’t say stupid things.” He murmurs.“It’s not stupid, it’s true.” Axel protests.The blond shakes his head, averting his gaze. Staring at the man’s emerald eyes that seem to glow in the night makes it hard for him to think clearly. At the same time, he can’t deny that it’s a thrilling feeling. He rolls onto his back, fixating on a specific star in the sky. It’s so small and dim compared to the others surrounding it.“Can I ask you something?” Roxas questions softly, not moving his gaze from the sky.“Anything.” Axel answers easily.His response sends the blond’s heart an extra loud thump, wondering how the redhead is able to speak the immediate thoughts that come to his mind. Roxas feels like he needs to mentally calculate his responses, otherwise he might say something stupid. It’s why he pauses for a long time before continuing, forcing himself to open his mouth even though he feels like he might stutter over his words.“Did you think of me often?”He doesn’t need to specify what he’s asking, knowing that Axel will understand what he’s referring to. He hears the redhead shifting again and has to will himself to not look at him.“Like you wouldn't believe,” Axel answers as if he's answering what one plus one is. “I dreamt of you too.” He adds.Now Roxas sits up to hide his face from the redhead, scowling at how flustered he is right now. “A simple ‘yes’, would have sufficed.” He mutters, biting his lip tightly again. When did Axel become such a sap?He sees Axel sit up next to him in his peripheral and when his shoulder brushes up against the blond’s, Roxas can only wonder when they got so close to each other. “Did you think of me?” Axel asks in return.The blond nods slowly, staring out at the dark waves rolling onto the shore. “There were so many things I wanted to say to you, but I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to.”“Like what?”Roxas looks down to the sand, seeing Axel’s hand leaning into it as he supports himself. “I don’t know, I lost track after while. It was hard to believe I’d get a second chance.”“It’s still hard for me to believe that it happened.” The redhead adds.Roxas looks at him again, seeing the way Axel’s eyes stare longingly at the sea. His eyes have become coated in a layer of glass, making the blond want to do whatever he can to make Axel feel better again. Unsure of what would do such a thing, Roxas allows his instincts to take control and tilts his head down to rest against Axel’s shoulder gently, staring at the sea with him. He’s still not the best at working between his head and his heart, feeling short on words most times. But when he feels the redhead’s head lean against his own in response, he smiles faintly in recognition.“Don’t ever leave me again Rox.” Axel says. It’s not a demand or even a request, but rather a fragile plea. It holds all of the fears and insecurities the redhead has been storing inside of him up until now, presenting itself to Roxas like a sudden formation of pieces coming together. The realization of it all makes the blond’s throat feel tight, but in a way that he knows isn’t bad. He’s not very good with knowing what to say yet, but this response comes easily to the blond without thought.“I won’t.”A promise.One he’d keep for the rest of his days. And so would Axel.