Created as part of the 8 Days of Axel Challenge

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 7 | Day 8

He laid down on the edge of the clocktower, the sun having set ages ago and his ice cream long gone. Lea had the popsicle stick in-hand — not a winner — and stared up at the moon overhead. It was really late. Kairi and the others were going to start worrying if they weren’t up to their eyes in worry already.

“Speakin’ of,” Lea said, smiling at the moon and gesturing at it with the popsicle stick. “You’d really like my new friends, Isa. And don’t give me your attitude, either, y’know it’s true.”

He gave a light laugh at the imaginary exchange. Nice as they all were, none of his new friends were really gonna get this. They were putting their groups of friends together again, bit by bit, and they probably weren’t gonna face ‘em down at the endgame. Alright, Aqua and Ventus might. But he wasn’t sure their take on Isa and he wasn’t about to go around opening old wounds.

“I get the feeling you ‘n Aqua would talk for ages. Philosophy and strategy and whatnot,” he kept up with his train of thought. “Betcha she’d kick you into next week too.” Lea gave another laugh, watching a thin cloud trail in front of the moon. “I wonder if Ventus ever told her about you and me. I almost won that match, remember? ‘Course I did.”

From where I stood, the only thing you drew was a big L on your forehead for loser, lame, laughable…

“Yeah, yeah. You and I, we just remember it differently.” Where did these one-sided conversations and bittersweet trots down memory lane ever get him, anyway… Better than nothing? Better than just — sitting around and missing him? Lea sighed, sitting up and tapping his boot absently with the stick. Not like he was gonna keep it anyway, since it was a loser too.

Which would you rather suffer the loss of — some make-believe friendship, or a real one?

“Geez, you weren’t kidding,” he answered. “I’m really suffering here without you, Is’. The new friends are great, don’t get me wrong. Never once tried to up and kill me,” Lea joked, shaking his head. “But it just makes me notice the spot you left even more.”