It started only a little while ago, this feeling of being lost, helpless in the torrent flow of life. It started out small. Not being able to solve one of the equations for his calculus homework.
But it grew.
He began to feel lost in his own mind. Confused when he couldn't find a reason to wake up every morning. No-one noticed the disintegration behind his mask. Sora, his life loving twin, didn't notice the confusion in his eyes.
Often, he found himself wondering what death would be like. Was it better than being alive? Was the grass really greener on the other side? Or was it dried up and brown?
Driving home along coastal roads he thought about how easy it would be to simply turn the steering wheel minutely and let the car drift off over the cliff and onto the waiting rocks below.
At school he went to class but come the final bell, could not recall anything that had happened that day at all. His friends appeared in front of him, mouthing words he couldn't understand.
He floated through his days as though this life was just a dream. Eating fell from his mind, he couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten anything other than crackers. His clothes became buggy and loose. His hair started succumbing to gravity. His face became gaunt and eyes dimmed.
People forgot him. Conversation no longer swelled out to capture him at the lunch table. His lab partner did all the practical experiments without talking to him or even asking for help. Teachers asked him no questions in class, accepting him as part of the unnoticed. He faded away into the crevices of peoples thoughts.
Yet it shocked them when he killed himself.
At his funeral they spoke of a bright, happy child that devoted himself to his schoolwork and friends. They spoke of the suddenness of his death and how there were no warning signs. They spoke how they would have done anything to ease his pain, if only they'd known.
But they had known. They had known something wasn't right. They had known that he hadn't been himself. They just hadn't cared enough to take the time to find out what was wrong. They hadn't taken the time to see that he'd needed saving.
The tears shed that day were not just for him but for themselves.
'Rest in peace, Roxas. You deserve that much, at least"
