If I told you that the sky changed colors, would you believe me?

If I told you that I believed in ghosts, would you still be my friend?

But it's not just that. I believe in those things. And so much more.

I don't believe in a Romeo and a Juliet. No way. I believe in a Romeo and a Romeo. I believe in a Juliet and a Juliet, although the latter is a lot less common.

I didn't even know that I believed in a Romeo and a Romeo until I was sixteen. And even then, it was only because I met Roxas for the second time around.

I didn't believe in ghosts until I was sixteen.

I didn't believe in anything.

I thought I was fucking invincible.

Nothing could hurt me.

And then came Roxas. And then.

The first time I saw Roxas, I was entranced. The blue of the sky was wiped out and replaced with that shining golden hair that looked like fresh wheat cut from a field after a rain.

At night, I would imagine that hair. I would imagine myself stroking it, kissing it, running my hands through its softness and marveling at how silky it was.

By day, I would sink into fantasies of that hair while making casual conversations with him.

Then, just as quickly as he had popped into my life, he was gone. Gone like the wind.

"Nobody would miss me," he said. "I would," I told him. But he didn't stay. Not even for me.

And then I found him again. After searching for years, I found him again. By that time, I was sixteen. He was fourteen, about to turn fifteen.

One day, I finally worked up enough strength to show myself to him. In his world. In Twilight Town. In a place where I could never fit in.

He stared at me blankly. He said, "Who are you?"

Who are you?

That's a good question. Who am I? Who am I without you, Roxas? Tell me.

I laughed and said, "Oh, Roxas. Stop pretending. You know it's me. Axel. Your best friend. Remember?"

He continued to stare at me. And then he said, "I don't have any best friends named Axel."

That hurt, Roxas. That really, really hurt.

I decided to quit the crap and just go ahead with my orders. I called up a few Dusks. You defeated them. Just like I'd expected you would.

I made my stage left. I brushed by you as I disappeared. I reached out and felt your hair. Just a little ruffle. You didn't notice.

Back in my room in the Castle That Never Was, I cradled my hand and laughed. Laughing with tears in my eyes and dripping down my face.

Your hair wasn't soft like I'd imagined, Roxas. It wasn't silky. It was nowhere close to freshly cut wheat.

Your hair was spiky. It was hard. It hurt to touch.

And you. You didn't remember. To you, I was nothing but. Nothing but a ghost.