It’s a quiet night-morning-whatever in Never Was and Axel is content in his secluded little spot on top of the tower until the sun invades and burns away his shadows from the inside out.

Actually, it’s just Roxas, invading his space with his bright hair and vivid eyes all slapped together on a somber face. Axel knows he will never understand him, and Roxas’ opening announcement further proves his theory on how the kid may be the best-worst thing in the Organization.

Roxas leans in without a care in the world and says, “Tell me what kinds of love there are.”

Axel slowly tilts his head up and instantly is blinded. His nose scrunches up and for some reason, the boy thinks it’s funny when he does that. Axel shoves a hand in Roxas’ face to make him step back and stop shooting golden rays into his eyes. They are bloodshot enough as they are, anyway.

“I’m absolutely flattered that you have asked me to describe such a heart-touching subject,” he states with a hand on his chest when Roxas sits next to him, “but I don’t think I’m qualified to teach you about the birds and the bees.”

Roxas sneers at him, his feet dangling childishly off the edge of the building. “Not that,” he barks with a roll of his blinding eyes, making the blue disappear into red and black. “Everyone is in love with someone in a different way. Tell me about all different kinds of love.”

Axel leans back on one hand and joins Roxas in his feet-dangling joy. A smile emerges, though it is not as prickly as his usual grins. He could use the amusement and company on a bland day like this, and Roxas could at least provide some color, despite its intensity. One finger taps his chin, the black glove warm on his skin, and suddenly Roxas is watching his every move.

“Love, love, love,” he hums as if it were a song with no beginning and no end. “It has one simple definition but so many exceptions. Some thrive from it and some die from it. Poetry, flowers, chocolate. Anything you want to keep close and sacred to you, I suppose.”

“Are we in love?” Roxas blurts, naively, leaning forward as though he thinks he can catch Axel’s words.

“Sure,” Axel shrugs. “Friendship is one kind of love, even though we’re not supposed to feel it.” He stops there because any reflection on the possibility of feeling gives him a terrible headache, and the day is too dreary to be dealing with such nonsense.

But Roxas’ need is still fresh in the open air. “Where does one feel friendship?” he asks, scooting closer.

Axel raises a thin eyebrow and gives Roxas a stern look, but the boy’s curiosity will not fade. He shrugs again, and lifts his arm to pat Roxas’ back.

“Right there,” he says, pressing his palm between Roxas’ shoulder blades. He nestles it there, half-expecting to feel a thump underneath the black coat. “Friends are the last ones to watch your back, and the first ones to stab it.”

Roxas glares and pushes Axel’s hand off. “Your lying will get the best of you if you keep it up,” he warns, and Axel laughs because he sounds so much like Xemnas’ puppet.

“My honesty makes up for my missing heart,” he claims, almost biting his tongue accidentally when saying that. Roxas continues to scowl, but lets it drop after a few moments. He stares at the city before them, lights reflecting off his cheeks, and rotates his shoulders.

“What about love for family?” he asks, still not satisfied.

“You feel it in your hands and feet,” Axel answers, “because they teach you how to walk, and hold your hand if you need help standing up.”

“Ah,” says Roxas in understanding, but he shakes his head because the reply is not fitting. He stares at his hands and dangling feet as if he’s expecting something, but turns back to Axel when nothing happens.

“What about romantic love?” he finally asks, and Axel’s grin, for reasons he cannot comprehend, has no sinister itches in it.

“All the movies and sappy ballads say it’s here,” and he points to the left side of Roxas’ chest, “but I believe you actually feel it here,” and his finger is pointed at Roxas’ stomach. The boy looks at his belly, eyes dazzling and intense with the ambiance of a grand discovery.

“Can I test it?” he asks, his voice excited and uncontrollable. Axel says nothing at first, unaffected by the offer, and then shrugs once again.

“Sure,” he complies, and turns to face his companion.

Roxas is inexperienced and makes no starting move, so Axel takes his face in his hands and pulls Roxas close. The blue eyes close, shutting off their powerful rays, and Axel can finally see the boy’s face without being blinded. The distance between them disappears and Axel tilts his head to capture Roxas’ red, cold lips completely.

Even without a heart, he knows that he is supposed to feel a tingling in his back, as he always feels when Roxas is around. To his surprise, there is a sensation crawling down his spine, to his fingers and toes; and when Roxas gasps between their lips, Axel’s stomach spins and his body buzzes with electricity. Unknowingly, his lips part and suck in Roxas’ pouty lower lip, nearly sighing when Roxas gasps again. The tingling is no longer just in his hands and shoulders, but everywhere at once, almost making him feel intact.

Just before he can realize this, Roxas pulls away and tilts his head back, breath escaping in frosty puffs above them. His eyes open, and even though the blue is blinding, Axel cannot help but stare, captivated, burning from the inside out.

Roxas frowns at him, as if he’s disappointed.

“I felt it in more than just my stomach,” he says. “What kind of love is that?”

“The worst kind of all,” Axel replies, and he has to kiss Roxas again to hide the fact that he suddenly can’t speak.