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[ Dusting needed or not, it's still cleaner than Axel's room. Or, cleaner than it will be, once he has one. (Sorry in advance, Roxas, but you did kinda sign up for that.)

He shakes his head at mention of Shun. Emizel, he's met, and King Mickey, he knows of; but beyond that, they're all unfamiliar.

And, that about does it, doesn't it? Save for for one more... ]

Looks like you're missing one.

[ Axel casually points to it. Is it turned face-down on purpose? It seems rather deliberate, given that it's the only one in such a state, and long enough for dust to have gathered on its upturned backside. ]

[Roxas looks at the one Axel's pointing to, less with the fond nostalgia of before and taking on a sadder tone, almost with resignation. It's not like he's been deliberately hiding the information from Axel, but more something he doesn't want to face. It had to happen eventually though.

He lifts it up, revealing a picture of Roxas and a girl with blonde hair. They're both smiling in the picture, Roxas especially so. ]

That...that's Elize. She arrived around the same time I did, but she went home...twice.

She was...is?...was my girlfriend.

[He's still trying to figure that part out.]

[ "That’s ... my girlfriend." It replays in his mind more than once.

To top it off, pictured in the photo is something Axel’s been fighting to get back; something he’s got memorized; perhaps even along with a selfish notion that it might’ve belonged solely to him once: That smile. The one he’s missed; the one he’s only seen flickers of since arriving here; that’d always made him feel just a little funny inside, in a way he’s never quite been able to describe.

With as expressive as Axel’s face has always unwittingly been, if Roxas watches closely, he can see the realization blow through Axel in partially-digested stages: First comes the shock, lime green eyes widening and brows lifting for just a moment in a sort of flicker; next comes acknowledgement, which sort of resets all that. So there’s a subtle glance down and away after, even if his head doesn’t move; and finally, a couple blinks, telling that he’s processed it. He’s accepted it. What other choice does he have?

And what does it even matter?

Obviously if he’s kept this photo of them together -- even face-down as it was -- there’s still a pretty strong attachment there, right? It reminds him of the photos he’d been brought of Roxas, some of which he secretly kept, along with that damned ‘Winner’ stick. They’re silly, little mementos he can’t bring himself to let go of; pieces of a past together that he just keeps hauling around, for some reason, like they’ll bring him comfort or something. Psh. Like he needs it -- his heart’s not in it, remember?

All the same, heaven forbid Roxas ever finds that crumpled white envelope.

He’d be bald-faced lying if he said he knows how this all works. What is he supposed to say in a moment like this? Compliment her? Compliment him? Say he’s happy for them? He would, maybe, just for the sake of being “a good best friend”, but his throat’s mysteriously gone dry, voice vanishing. That is, of course, until he forces himself to swallow roughly and summons up his finest (weakest) grin from who knows where, still a plastic façade at best.

Happiness looks good on ya, Rox. Real good.

That’s all I ever wanted for ya, y’know. And I’m glad you found it.

(Or, he will be, at least. It’s a ‘fake it til ya make it’ kind of deal.) In the meantime, he’s just going to redirect himself to ignore the way his body feels kind of off now, somehow. ]

Gotcha. [ A couple of minute nods and he switches his weight to the opposite hip, tapping another photo to draw their attention to it. ] So, you and Emizel go back a ways, huh?

[ Yes, perfect -- let them talk about that. Anything else will do. ]

[Admittedly, Roxas is kind of glad that Axel doesn't really ask any more questions about Elize. He's starting to turn a corner, but her absence is still there, still missed, and he's always had a hard time letting go. Talking about her still hurts.]

Yeah, he also around the same time I did...when everyone first started showing up here. We were actually roommates for a while.

[ He doesn’t want to, doesn’t need to know much else about her. At some point, she made Roxas happy -- happier than sea salt ice cream on clock towers? Who knows -- and that’s what counts.

So Axel nods along to the rest of the exposition, appearing to take active interest. That’s what good best friends do, right? Still, while he hopes it isn’t as obvious as it feels, he keeps intermittently glancing back to that particular photo; the expression of real, true joy on Roxas’s face.

I’d say I feel pretty down. But why?

It doesn’t matter -- those are just thoughts. He can say he feels any number of things and still, his heart just wouldn’t be in it, no matter what kind of strange magic this world employs. ]

Roommates, huh? Explains a lot. Speaking of...

[ He should excuse himself. Still, he’ll throw in a playful elbow nudge here, just to continue the ruse that nothing’s changed between them, because rightly, it shouldn’t have. He’s got to figure out why it... doesn’t feel that way. ]

I should probably finish moving in, y’know.

[ Move in what, Roxas could ask; it’s not like Axel had come to this place with luggage in tow. His worldly possessions here amount to all of about a handful. And a white envelope. But, no time for a Q&A now; he’ll make sure of that. ]

I’ll catch ya around, Roxas.

Huh? Okay...

[That seemed sudden, especially since there wasn't a whole lot for Axel to move in. Unless he'd found some furniture or something.]

You, uh, you want to get ice cream later or something?

[ Roxas doesn't get it. That's a good thing, right? Right; since honestly, at the moment, Axel doesn't either. It doesn't make sense that he's so bothered.

He does know one thing, however. You're still his best friend. Be that best friend, Axel. He will. No matter what, he will.

He's nearly out the door when that offer stops him in his tracks. Looking back over a shoulder, his face breaks out into what can only be described as a bittersweet expression. ]

Yeah, sure. [ Ice cream with Roxas? He'll never turn that down. But... ] Later, alright?

I'm holding you to that.

[Even though he's not sure what that expression means.]

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sorry for tldr

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