"I killed him."
Roxas's mouth stopped moving mid-retort, fixed in an expression somewhere between shock and horror before his eyes flashed with cold fire. In that moment Axel thought maybe he'd miscalculated, maybe he was about to find himself on the wrong end of a keyblade, maybe, for once, he'd misjudged somebody.
But there was no flash of a blade being summoned, and those ice blue eyes were tempered with a hollowness that had not been there a moment ago.
"You did what?"
"I killed Sora," he repeated flatly.
Silence fell heavy between them again. It was a lie, a vicious lie tailored to strip away what hope for absolution the boy had.
If there was nothing to be gained from leaving, then he wouldn't.
"I hate you," Roxas said finally.
I love you. Axel didn't reply, didn't even move as the blonde shoved past him.
He'd hurt Roxas, he knew that. Probably deeper than those without hearts would ever be able to understand. But it didn't matter. Didn't matter if he broke what spirit remained from the boy's existence as a Somebody, didn't even matter if he never forgave him.
So long as he stayed.