"What's a kiss?"

Axel raised an eyebrow as Roxas' voice suddenly broke the serene silence they'd had going for the past half hour. They'd finished a mission, each separate as was becoming more common. He was glad for their evening meetings on top of the clock tower, really. It gave him a time to decompress before he had to go back and deal with Saix and Xemnas again.

He looked over to Roxas, gazing at the other as the red and gold of the setting sun gave his skin a honeyed appearance, golden hair and blue eyes almost glittering in the fading sunlight. Apparently, Roxas' mind was anything but serene, though Axel supposed that was nothing unusual.

"A kiss? What brought that up?"

Roxas' lips quirked down into a frown when his question wasn't answered immediately. He looked away from Axel and then out to the sunset. The almost finished bar of ice cream he had in his hand tilted down as he loosened his grip on the stick a little.

"Xaldin mentioned it…while we were in Beast's Castle. He said many people are under the delusion that lots of things could be solved by True Love's First 'Kiss'. When I asked him what that was, he just told me to RTC."

Axel frowned a little and then looked away from Roxas again, bringing the arm that rested over his knee back up toward his face, his own bar of ice cream resting against his lips before he took a bite, finishing off his third quarter of it.

"So…what is it?"

Roxas looked back over to Axel, blue eyes not wavering as they locked onto the other's face. Axel let the ice cream move away from his lips as he ate the bite he had taken. Then he looked over to Roxas with a small smile.

"A kiss is an action that people do to show they care about each other."

"Care about each other? Like friends?"

Axel shook his head, "No. More than friends."

"Best friends?"

Axel laughed, a grin pulling to his lips despite himself.

"More than best friends. People who love each other do it."

Roxas' face fell at that news, and he looked away.

"Oh. So…I guess as nobodies…we don't kiss, right? Because we can't love?"

Axel raised an eyebrow and then smiled, "Well, I can't say nobodies can't kiss. I mean Xigbar and Demyx kiss all the time."

Seriously, all the time. It was unnerving, really.

Roxas' face brightened hesitantly, and he lifted his ice cream to his lips. He didn't spend much time around Demyx and Xigbar, so he couldn't say he'd ever seen them kiss. But if they could…what was to say that he couldn't?

"So…I could kiss someone?"

"Sure. I don't see why not."

Roxas fell quiet at that, looking away as he took a bite of his ice cream, finishing it off. So he could kiss someone. But…he still wasn't sure that he really knew what a kiss was.

"So…what's a kiss, then?"

Axel looked over and tapped his finger to his own lips.

"When you press your lips to someone else's."

Roxas made a face at that, "You touch your lips to someone else's? Isn't that gross? I mean…their spit and all that… How is that showing someone you love them?"

Axel chuckled lightly, "Well if you think about it that way, then sure… It does seem gross…but it's really about how it makes you feel to be that close to someone. To love them so much that you don't mind their spit." Of course Roxas would see it that way.

Roxas frowned, "But we can't feel…so it's about the spit."

Axel ran his hand through his hair, rubbing at his scalp a little as he finished off his ice cream, "It's really not that bad. I mean…you don't really notice the spit."

Roxas' eyes widened and darted sharply to Axel as he turned a little on the ledge of the clock tower to face the red head.

"You've kissed someone before?"

Axel gave an uneasy look, twirling the finished ice cream stick between his gloved fingers. "Well yeah. I mean…I've kissed a couple of people."

"Show me."

Axel looked over at the demand, surprised by the determination on the other's face.

"Show you? You just said it was gross…"

"Well if you do it, it can't be that gross, right? Come on, I know no one else will…you're the only one, Axel…and you're my best friend."

Axel gave a soft sigh at those words and then his face softened into something fond, "You really want me to have your first kiss?"

Roxas looked a bit confused at that and then frowned.

"Why do you say that? Is it something special?"

"To most people it is…"

Roxas fell quiet with those words and looked away, pondering it. Then he looked back up to Axel, the determination back, though it was a little softer this time, as though he was beginning to hesitate.

"Then yes…. I want you to have my first."

Axel gazed at him steadily for a few seconds and then looked away, "Alright. Then close your eyes." Green flicked back up to Roxas' blue and held them.

Roxas was still for a second before letting his eyes close slowly. The second the lids touched, Axel let out a silent breath, frowning a little, getting his bearings. He knew that if he had a heart, it would be pounding right now. He could feel the blood singing and pounding through his veins even without it. He shifted on the ledge and leaned in, pausing before his nose could brush against Roxas', feeling the puff of Roxas' breath against his own lips.

He gazed at the other for a second, taking him in, memorizing him….this moment. The distance closed and his lips met Roxas' in a gentle touch. He heard the gasp from the other, saw his lashes flutter as he fought to keep his eyes closed. But he didn't pull away. Something inside of him flared in a way he'd never felt before and he let their lips meet a little more surely, parting gently, coaxing a real kiss out of the other.

Roxas responded, pressing into him tentatively, and he felt that flare roar to a wild blaze before he knew it. This…what was this? This….feeling?

Their lips parted slowly, remaining together for as long as possible before finally breaking apart. Axel stayed there for several seconds and then pulled away completely, leaving Roxas' personal space and looking away from him as he settled back into his normal position on the clock tower ledge.

Roxas' eyes opened slowly and he gazed at Axel, cheeks red, lips parted. That was a kiss?! That wasn't…that wasn't gross at all. That was….

"So, now you know what it is." Axel murmured, fighting for anything to break the silence. He relaxed a little when he heard Roxas let out a slightly hotter breath.

"Yeah…" Roxas murmured before looking back out to the sunset. Silence reigned for several seconds before Roxas looked down to his ice cream stick.

"Axel?"

Axel glanced over from the corner of his eyes and gazed at the other.

"Yeah?"

Roxas looked over and then flashed him a small grin, "You taste like ice cream."

Axel blinked at that and then reached over to push the other's shoulder lightly, a grin breaking out on his own lips.

"You do too, brat." he teased, to which Roxas laughed, "Come on. We need to get back to the castle." He pushed himself up and watched as Roxas did the same.

"Sure. Let's go."

Axel nodded and then opened up a portal so they could RTC, pausing when Roxas grabbed his sleeve to stop him for a second.

"Thank you…for showing me."

Axel gave him a softer smile and ruffled his hair, chuckling when the other batted his hand away with a pout.

"No, Roxas…thank you for giving me something so special."

Roxas grinned at him and moved past him, "Now you're getting sappy." He teased as he disappeared into the portal.

Axel watched him go and then ran his hand through his hair, the small smile remaining on his lips.

"Yeah… how about that…"

The darkness portal closed behind him after he walked through, leaving the clock tower vacant.